'Well Hung Lover' – Bristol, England - Atlas Obscura

'Well Hung Lover'

Banksy's image of a naked man dangling from the window of a sex health clinic. 

645
297

An image of a naked man dangling from a window concealing a suited man and his lingerie-clad lover isn’t the type of art you’d expect to see on the side of a sexual health clinic. But thanks to its iconic artist, the mural is there to stay.

Also known as Naked Man Hanging From Window, or just Naked Man, Banksy’s Well Hung Lover adds a bit of unexpected art to a sexual health clinic. The famous, anonymous street artist painted it in 2006, and it later became the United Kingdom’s first piece of legal street art.

As with most graffiti, the city council originally wasn’t too keen on the unsanctioned artwork, but locals supported it. When the council sent out an online poll about whether to remove it or not, 97% of the respondents voted in favor of letting Banksy’s art stay.

Unfortunately, even the council’s eventual approval couldn’t completely protect the renowned street artist’s work. In June 2009, vandals fired blue paint balls at the image and defaced it. Most of the resulting blurry blobs of paint were removed, though the bits of paint that actually hit the image were left since removing them would further damage the mural. In 2018, it was vandalized yet again when someone sprayed rude graffiti tags on the wall. 

Know Before You Go

The artwork can be best seen from a bridge at the bottom of Park Street, on the opposite side of the road to the imposing Bristol City Hall.

In partnership with KAYAK

Plan Your Trip

From Around the Web