About this artwork

Barcode was found in Bristol, on the side of a house on Pembroke Road. It was quickly removed but reappeared several years later at a school exhibition in Somerset. It shows an animal cage with a leopard in the foreground. The bars of the cage are made of a barcode. They are bent apart, indicating that the leopard escaped his prison. It's a print with a lot of symbolism. The barcode stands for capitalism, consumerism and materialism. We, as consumers, have become enslaved by so many choices. Capitalism has brainwashed people to believe they need things they don't need. The capitalism of the West forces people of third world countries to work as slaves. Banksy is trying to show us that we live inside of the prison walls of consumerism. We need to break free, just like the leopard did. The leopard represents strength and freedom. The leopard could also be a symbol of how nature is also a victim of consumerism. Animals are treated badly for consumption and entertainment.