Created in 2003,
FLYING COPPER is one of the defining works from Banksy’s early career and already brings together several elements that would become hallmarks of the British artist’s visual language: irony, the subversion of familiar symbols, and the confrontation of two seemingly incompatible realities.
At the centre of the composition stands a British police officer in full riot gear, heavily equipped and armed. Yet Banksy adds two unexpected elements: a pair of small angel wings and an oversized yellow smiley face in place of the officer’s features.
The entire power of Flying Copper lies in this contradiction.
The police officer embodies order, control and authority. The wings, by contrast, evoke innocence, protection and an almost celestial purity. The yellow smiley, immediately associated with happiness and light-heartedness, also refers to the acid house and rave culture of the 1990s. Behind this apparent visual simplicity, Banksy creates a deliberately ambiguous image: can authority truly be trusted simply because it presents a reassuring face?
The history of the work further reinforces its impact. The motif notably appeared in Turf War, the exhibition staged by Banksy in a warehouse in London’s East End in 2003. Life-size figures of winged police officers were suspended from the ceiling, literally giving the impression that these symbols of authority were flying above the visitors. In doing so, Banksy playfully references the English expression “pigs might fly”, used to describe something highly unlikely or impossible.
Yet beneath the humour lies a sharp critique. By combining an armed and threatening presence with symbols of happiness, innocence and benevolence, Banksy questions the way power presents, legitimises and stages itself. The smile becomes almost a mask: reassuring at first glance, yet deeply unsettling when confronted with the officer’s military equipment.
It is precisely this ability to create an image that is immediately readable while leaving room for multiple layers of interpretation that has established Banksy as one of the leading figures of street art and contemporary art.
The example presented by Galerie De Medicis in Paris belongs to a limited edition of 300. A work aimed at collectors seeking a powerful and instantly recognisable image from Banksy’s universe, at the crossroads of street art, popular culture and social criticism.
Artwork available at Galerie De Medicis, Place des Vosges, Paris.
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