Banksy Paints Escaping Oscar Wilde Mural For LGBTQ+ History Month / /
Banksy has confirmed that he was behind an artwork that appeared on a wall at HM Reading Prison earlier in the week. The notorious Victorian gaol best known for Oscar Wilde’s incarceration has become the latest mural in his politically charged archive.
It’s no coincidence that the stencilled painting depicts an escaping prisoner shimmying down a rope made from a roll of paper held straight by a typewriter. This is an obvious reference to Oscar Wilde and the unveiling of the art coincides with LGBTQ+ history month.
Campaigners have continued to lobby for the former jail to be turned into an arts centre rather than being sold for housing. The elusive artist confirmed the work through a video on his Banksy.co.uk website, the artist’s official authentication source.