An enormous AI-generated mural displayed on the wall of a pub in Banksy’s home city of Bristol has been removed after residents highlighted a string of obvious mistakes in the design.
The giant vinyl poster appeared on the Jolly Colliers pub in Bedminster, offering an inaccurate digital tour of Bristol’s best-known landmarks.
Among the artwork’s most notable errors was the SS Great Britain, which resembled a riverboat, while the Clifton Suspension Bridge was shown with an incorrect one-way traffic arrangement. The mural also featured a huge viaduct that does not exist.
The depiction of Cabot Tower was also wrong. Meanwhile, the colourful houses shown on the west side of Clifton Suspension Bridge are actually in Cliftonwood, on the opposite side of the city and overlooking Bristol harbour.
The AI design appeared to reference Banksy’s famous Bristol mural The Mild Mild West. However, instead of the well-known teddy bear throwing a petrol bomb, it showed a one-legged figure pointing.
The inaccuracies prompted an angry response from local residents, who appear to have taken matters into their own hands by tearing down the poster.
Images taken later showed the AI mural had been pulled from the pub’s side wall, leaving the Jolly Colliers without the controversial display.
The mural had triggered a fierce backlash among Bristol’s art community, particularly in the city associated with the internationally recognised street artist Banksy.
Pictured: The AI-generated mural attached to the side of a Bedminster pub, sparking anger across Bristol
Within days, the vinyl poster had been removed from the Jolly Colliers pub
Banksy, known for his distinctive stencilled spray-paint works, has achieved global recognition since emerging on the British art scene in the 1990s.
His politically charged pieces have addressed issues including British politics and society. Some have sold for tens of millions of pounds, cementing his status as one of the art world’s most influential figures.
The artist has consistently operated under a pseudonym, leading to years of speculation about his identity. Among those linked to the name Banksy is Robert Del Naja, a member of the band Massive Attack.
In 2008, The Mail on Sunday reported that Banksy was Robin Gunningham, who was born in Bristol in 1973.
The design appeared to have been printed onto a large sheet of vinyl before being fixed to the building.
Given Bristol’s international reputation for street art—and its strong connection to artists such as Banksy—the AI-generated mural quickly attracted attention.
Caroline Maggs, of the Bristol Mural Collective (BMC), told Bristol 24/7: “AI designs not only devalue but undermine the work of artists.”
She said the collective was “saddened and angered” that the Jolly Colliers had not chosen to support handmade artwork, adding: “We are small businesses, and as a small business themselves, they should have chosen better.”
Banksy’s original The Mild Mild West mural shows a teddy bear throwing a petrol bomb
The real SS Great Britain, depicted far less accurately in the AI-generated mural
The artist ‘Banksy’ was revealed in 2008 by The Mail on Sunday to in fact be a man named Robin Gunningham (pictured), who was born in Bristol in 1973. He has since changed his name to David Jones
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‘In a climate where humans are being replaced by AI at an alarming rate, choosing art like this is not only an aesthetic choice but a political one.’
Ms Maggs said that having no mural on the pub would have been a better choice than the AI art.
She added that the collective was open to discussions with the Jolly Colliers and would like to commission someone from the collective to ‘rectify their mistake’.
On Tuesday, a letter from an unknown artist condemning the AI art had been placed below the mural, but it was swiftly removed.
The letter called the decision to erect the mural ‘a disrespectful affront to this city’.
It wrote: ‘I am not alone in this opinion. Your decisions have angered a large portion of the very community you supposedly wish to support and exist alongside.’
While it was not signed by anybody, the writer acknowledged Bristol’s reputation for creativity and hosting Upfest, Europe’s largest street art festival.
The letter said: ‘Hundreds of murals exist across the city, created by truly talented individuals, with passion, hard-earned skill and dedication.
‘By choosing to ‘create’ (though that word gives more credit than is due) an AI generated image, produce it in vinyl and stick it to the side of your building, you are actively damaging the livelihoods of artists, disrespecting and contributing to the theft of their work, and making a mockery of what makes Bristol the city it is.
‘You have watered down the spirit, the originality and the very essence of the visual aesthetic you have tried, and failed, to recreate.’
Emily Tuffen, also an artist from BMC, said the mural was a ‘slap in the face’ to Bristol, adding that ‘Brunel would be turning in his grave’ over the piece.
Ms Tuffen said the mural was a ‘very large, very public display of something that is fast becoming a very clear and real threat to the existence of humanity’.
Several other artists from the BMC also criticised the artwork. Nina Raines called the work ‘visually naff,’ while Fiona Finn Teo described it as ‘an appalling and tone-deaf display of absolute nonchalance and disregard to artists residing in Bristol and beyond’.
Tuffen added: ‘The mural is like a giant green light telling all of south Bristol (and anyone who views it online) – AI is fine, let’s jump in feet first!
‘Tally ho! I don’t think it will last long, one way or the other. Bristol won’t stand for it.
‘On a personal level, I would be so happy if someone circled all the mistakes in red paint like a teacher or a spot the difference puzzle. That would make it actually a good street art piece and a clear statement.
‘Bristol loves authentic creativity and won’t stand for intellectual property theft! It wouldn’t cost the proprietors too much if they wanted THAT commissioned!’
A spokesperson from Punch, who own the Bedminster pub, said the mural had been a ‘temporary measure due to the condition of the external wall’ and that they were looking forward to collaborating with local artists and the community in the near future for a permanent mural.
In a statement, the spokesperson added: ‘The external wall requires some minor works which would make a permanent mural at this time difficult, so we had opted for a temporary solution.’