The distraction tactics used by Banksy and his team have been revealed by the owner of a model village after the famous street artist paid a visit leaving a piece of his artwork behind.
A miniature stable sprayed with the words ‘Banksy’ and ‘Go Hard or Go Home' was left at Merrivale Model Village in Norfolk on August 6, but was not noticed until a visitor pointed it out two days later.
The elusive artist managed to distract members of staff to get into the model village site unnoticed, after a group of people refused to have their photograph taken as part of the ticketing system.
READ MORE: Anger at long delays through Bristol
Frank Newsome, the owner of Merrivale Model Village, spoke to the BBC about some of the distraction tactics Banksy and his team used to get him into the site unseen, including setting up a drone and refusing to take it down.
“One lady got talking to a member of staff and asked to see the model repair room and that got the employee out the way.” he said.
“Then some other guys set up a drone and the staff asked them to take it down and they said they wouldn’t, then that got the attention of everyone.
Get the best stories about the things you love most curated by us and delivered to your inbox every day. Choose what you love here
“It was a diversion tactic, they hid in plain sight, but apparently that’s what Banksy does.
“He is so clever. He had everything planned to a tee.”
Despite the miniature model stable being taken off site to protect it, Banksy’s team requested it be placed on show for the public.
Mr Newsome has confirmed he will honour Banksy’s request.
He added: “I’d convinced myself it wasn’t genuine.
“Now it’s worrying me about how to keep it safe.”
Mr Newsome said in the short-term he wanted to keep the model so the public could enjoy and appreciate it.
He said: “But in the long-term we've got to make the right decision, we don't want to jump into anything.
"We are a family business and we will need to sit down together about it."
The model stable was one of ten artworks left in Norfolk and Suffolk during the artist’s so-called Great British Spraycation.
What do you think? Let us know in the comments below
