Deceptively simple, the artwork features a young girl reaching out to a balloon. As with many of the elusive artist’s pieces it communicates a raw and powerful message that belies the simple imagery. First appearing as street murals across London in 2002, the work famously was graffitied in Waterloo Bridge with the caption “there is always hope” amongst other locations in the city. In our latest blog we explore the meaning of the work, its history and popularity.

Between 2004/2005 the work was released by Pictures on Walls as a signed edition of 150 and an unsigned edition of 600. Proving instantly popular with collectors, the work captures the stencil style of graffiti that Banksy became renowned for.

On examining the work, the viewer is immediately drawn to both the figure of the young girl and the balloon. The red balloon, a symbol of childhood and innocence, floats just out of reach from the girl whose hair, like the balloon, is carried in the wind. A sense of duality inhabits the piece and the “message” of the work can be interpreted in two ways. Does the work show the loss of hope and innocence or is the girl reaching out, eagerly waiting to receive a love that she so desperately craves? Instantly relatable and inherently human, the work has come to symbolise the artist and his style.