Imitation of Banksi
Some photographs happen because you spot them at the right time; others, because the right lens lets you see them from a distance before they disappear. This was the latter. Walking past a construction site, I noticed a splash of red against the pale, textured hoarding — a painted figure in a hat and long coat, back turned, hands behind him, staring through a broken window. The text alongside reads: “Segui il cantiere – Un omaggio ai pensionati, risorsa del quartiere” (“Follow the construction site – A tribute to pensioners, the neighbourhood’s resource”). It’s part humour, part homage, a knowing wink to the archetypal retiree who spends his days watching building works progress brick by brick.
I took the shot with a Fuji X-T3 paired with the Fujinon 100–400mm, a combination that gave me the reach to work from a comfortable distance without altering the scene by getting too close. That extra working space kept the perspective clean and preserved the integrity of the moment — no curious onlookers or site workers reacting to a photographer in their midst. The lens also allowed me to compress the elements slightly, tightening the relationship between the painted figure and the real, splintered wooden frame of the window.
Compositionally, I kept the window slightly left of centre, using the figure to counterbalance it on the right. The eye moves naturally between the jagged geometry of the broken glass and the bold outline of the man in red. The rough texture of the OSB board adds depth and context, its uneven grain working in harmony with the gritty, street-art aesthetic.
Light was on my side: an overcast sky provided even illumination, keeping highlights in check and letting the red coat stand out without any unnatural saturation boost. The X-T3 handled the tonal range well, and the Fujinon’s sharpness pulled out the fine detail in the paint strokes and the weathered timber. Post-processing was minimal — a touch of contrast and clarity to match what I saw on-site.
The image’s title, a deliberate play on Banksy’s name, nods to the way this work borrows his visual grammar: the stencil-like figure, the social commentary, the seamless integration of the surface into the message. But here, the wit is local, rooted in a specific cultural type that you’d recognise instantly if you’ve ever walked past a building site in Italy. The Fuji and Fujinon may have given me the technical edge to capture it, but it’s the mix of imitation and lived authenticity that gives the picture its staying power.
