Bombhugger, also known as Bomb Love, Bomb Girl and Bomb Hugger, is an early Banksy screen print. The image of a girl hugging a deadly weapon has become iconic and explores the juxtaposition of love and war. Since its inception, the work has become commonly associated with Banksy and his stance on anti-war (echoed in many other works).

One of the earliest versions to appear was as part of a mural in East London in 2001 and featured in Banksy’s book ‘Banging Your Head Against a Brick Wall’, another version also appeared in Brighton in 2003.

In this artwork, we see a young girl hugging a bomb tightly drawing the munition into her and holding it lovingly to her chest like a beloved toy. Stencilled in black upon a bubble gum pink background, the colours of the work further creates counterpoints between the innocence of the girl, the cold indifferent metal shell of the bomb and the sense that whilst the bomb may come with terrible consequences, the girl innocently does not want to let it go. Much like the rare paintings on canvas entitled, ’Kids On Guns’ Banksy uses weapons and children to bring together two diametrically-opposed subjects creating urgency, dread and intrigue.