Cleaners Mistakenly Remove Work From Famous Graffiti Artist

Cleaners who maintain London, England’s underground trains are a fastidious group, quickly removing dirt, grime, and graffiti from the public transportation system, especially considering the current coronavirus pandemic. However, the cleaners’ quick work proved a bit hasty earlier this month when they mistakenly removed a piece of work by world-renowned graffiti artist Banksy, the European Cleaning Journal reports.

The artwork, called “If You Don’t Mask, You Don’t Get,” featured rats wearing face masks or using them as parachutes. One rat was sneezing, and another was holding a bottle of hand sanitizer. Banksy, who was disguised as a member of the train cleaning staff and wearing a hazmat suit, painted the images inside a Circle Line service train. But by the time he had posted a video of the artwork online, the Transport for London (TfL) cleaning crew had already wiped it away.

A TfL spokesperson defended the actions of the cleaning crew, explaining they have been instructed to keep the public train system clean, especially given the current situation.