BANKSY // Gangsta Rat, 2004

  • Banksy’s 2004 Gangsta Rat with boombox and gold chain, iconic street art rodent character.
    Banksy, Gangsta Rat, 2004.
    Screen-print in colours on wove paper, 50×30 cm. 
    © Banksy, all rights reserved.
    Gangsta Rat first appeared in the mid-2000s as part of Banksy’s wider exploration of rats as anti-heroes of the city. Kitted out in early 2000s hip-hop clothes, with a boombox and the tag “iPow” behind him, the rat mocks our obsession with brands while calling out the contradictions at the heart of the art world.
     
    The rat, a recurring figure in Banksy's work, functions as a metaphor for survival, invisibility, and resistance. Often associated with French street artist Blek le Rat, who heavily influenced Banksy, the rat became an emblem of underground voices refusing to be erased.
     
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  • “They exist without permission. They are hated, hunted and persecuted."

    - Banksy 

    Gangsta Rat is one of Banksy’s most playful yet biting stencils, fusing urban culture with satire. Dressed in hip-hop clothes with a boombox and the tag “iPow”, the rat parodies branding and mocks the commodification of rebellion.

     

    A central figure in Banksy’s practice, the rat symbolises survival and resistance, drawing inspiration from Blek le Rat. In Gangsta Rat, humour and parody sharpen into critique, showing how even counterculture can be packaged and sold back to us.