Mysterious street artist strikes again

Last week, a mural was painted on the side of a vacant building in a north London neighborhood, artfully re-foliating a pruned tree in the Islington North area. The mural consisted of green, dripping paint to suggest new foliage for a nearby tree. On the lower left side of the piece, a stencil of a person holds a paint sprayer while they gaze upwards. Though no one knows officially, the mural appears to have gone up on Sunday, March 17. Then, on Monday, it was confirmed by an Instagram post from Banksy himself that the pseudonymous artist was behind the work. He posted before-and-after images and later reported that the building is currently vacant and for rent, but that he plans to keep the mural up. Banksy took a paint-peeling, dirty wall and a sawed-up, stumpy tree and turned them into works of art.    James Peak, creator of the BBC Radio 4 series The Banksy Story, told the BBC that the work has an obvious message: “Nature’s struggling, and it is up to us to help it grow back.” When looking at this piece, Banksy chose a very urban and populated environment in which to place his piece, with the...