Banksy shows off his British seaside ’spraycation’

Banksy, Britain's most famous street artist, on Aug. 13 confirmed what many had already suspected - that he is indeed the author of a number of works that have appeared recently in British seaside towns.

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An Instagram video clip, just over three minutes long and entitled "A Great British Spraycation," shows the elusive artist taking a summer road trip in a beat-up camper van with cans of spray paint stashed in a cooler.

In one work on the concrete sea-defence wall of a British beach, a rat lounges in a deckchair, sipping a cocktail.

In another, sticking to the seaside theme, a mechanical claw dangles above a public bench as if anyone who sits there is about to be plucked up like a prize in an arcade game.

Another shows a giant seagull swooping down to snatch some outsized chips - French fries to U.S. readers - from a waste skip or dumpster.

A fourth shows three children in a rickety boat. One looks ahead while another is busy bailing out water with a bucket.
Above them, appears the inscription: "We're all in the same boat."

On the roof of a bus shelter, a couple also dance to the tune of a flat-capped accordion player, in a black and white painting evoking the faded, down-at-heel feel of many of the country's once-prosperous seaside resorts.

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In recent years, the Bristol artist, who cleverly maintains the mystery of his identity, has kept the attention of the contemporary art world with his social commentaries and causes - migrants, opposition to Brexit, denunciation of Islamist radicals - as well as stirring the excitement of the moneyed art markets.

Last March, a work honoring caregivers fetched a record 14.4 million pounds (about $20 million, 20 million euros).
The proceeds...