Finsbury Park mural: Banksy confirms he is behind north London tree street art
A tree mural in Finsbury Park that appeared on a residential building overnight is the work of Banksy, the anonymous street artist has confirmed.
The artist claimed the graffiti as his own in an Instagram post on Monday, following a morning of speculation after it appeared on the building on Hornsey Road.
The artwork features swathes of green behind a pared back tree to give the appearance of leaves, with a stencil of a person holding a pressure hose next to it.
The artwork appeared on Sunday in Hornsey Road.
Residents said they were "proud and delighted" at the thought of the elusive artist choosing their street for his latest mural.
Wanja Sellers, a Hornsey Road resident who lives a few doors down from the mural, said: "We're so proud and delighted that Banksy chose our road and chose Finsbury Park for his work.
"The bright green colours represent Islington, which is lovely, and also, of course, St Patrick's Day, which is nice and festive.
"Choosing the colours of our borough just makes it feel like a personal message to us residents. We just feel so proud."
Speculation had mounted through Monday morning that the work was that of Banksy, before it was confirmed to be so, with one expert saying it appeared to be a “dead cert”.
Speaking to the BBC, documentary maker James Peak, creator of the Radio 4 series The Banksy Story, said: “To my mind it looks like a dead cert.”
He added: “It's spring now, and this tree should be bursting forth with leaves, but Banksy must have cycled past and thought how miserable it looks.
"So, on St Patrick's Day, he has taken exactly the same shade of green Islington Council use for their street signs and used a pressure hose or a fire extinguisher to spray the leaves back in, onto the rather dilapidated wall behind."
Islington councillor Flora Williamson also came across the artwork while out canvassing.
She later tweeted: "By far the most exciting thing to happen on today's canvass session on Hornsey Road was seeing that Banksy had come to Tollington overnight.
"Lots of local interest - I'm a fan of it."
Locals have also posted on social media about the mural. One said: “Banksy came overnight and now my rent will skyrocket."
Another added: “Proud new caretakers of an apparent new Banksy piece in Finsbury Park… Woke up this morning to it on the side of flat.”
Before this piece, his last confirmed work was in December, when he painted military drones on to a stop sign in Peckham.
That work removed less than an hour after it was confirmed to be genuine on the artist’s social media, with witnesses reporting it was taken down by a man with bolt cutters.
Two men were later arrested on suspicion of theft and criminal damage.