Banksy is the pseudonym of a street art artist whose real name and identity remain uncertain and remain the subject of speculation. Apparently British and active since the 1990s, he uses stencil painting to convey his messages, which often mix politics, humour and poetry.

His works are humorous images, sometimes combined with slogans.

The message is usually anarchist, anti-militarist, anti-capitalist or anti-system and its characters are mostly rats, monkeys, policemen, soldiers, children, famous people or old people.

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Banksy creates his stencils on all the walls of the world. In 2005, he painted on the wall of Gaza to give the Palestinian people hope. We find his particular style everywhere: New York, London, Paris, Venice...

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The Class Art Biarritz gallery offers several serigraphs, signed or not, by Banksy, all with a certificate of authenticity from Pest Control.

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Most of Banksy's paintings are made with stencils. In his book Wall and Piece, Banksy explains this decision: he worked slowly in his early days and was often caught by the police. The stencil technique allows him to work much more quickly on the spot.

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On June 23, 2017, DJ Goldie accidentally revealed Banksy's identity during an interview giving the artist's first name, Robert, with media and fans of the artist concluding that it was Robert Del Naja, a member of Massive Attack62.  This theory was fuelled by journalist Craig Williams' matching of the locations and dates of the works to the band's tour dates. The leader of Massive Attack refutes this theory but reveals that they are friends.

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Banksy's worldwide success and anonymity have increased the number of imitations and posed many problems concerning the authentication of certain works, especially when they are not signed. To remedy this, Banksy uses different channels to authenticate his works. Since 2009, the company Pest Control, linked to Banksy, is the only one to recognise or not his works to avoid fraud. He also uses his Instagram account and sometimes his website to claim his stencils.

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On October 21, 2020, the painting Show me the Monet, from the Crude Oils series ("Vulgar oil paintings") was sold in London by Sotheby's, for 7.7 million pounds sterling.  This makes it Banksy's second highest-selling painting.

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On October 14, 2021, his work, La Petite Fille au ballon, which had partially self-destructed thanks to a paper shredder hidden in its frame during an auction on October 5, 2018, was relisted by his buyer. The auction this time reached 21.8 million euros, which is a record for Banksy.