Banksy’s ‘Love Is in the Air’ / ‘Flower Thrower’: Meaning and History – Explained
Banksy’s Love Is in the Air, also known as Flower Thrower, is one of the artist’s most recognisable images, depicting a masked protester poised to throw a bouquet of flowers rather than a weapon. The image appeared in Banksy’s work before the celebrated street version was painted in Beit Sahour, near Bethlehem, in 2005, close to the West Bank barrier. Its collision of protest and peace has since become one of the defining images of Banksy’s career.
Depicting a masked protester frozen mid-throw, the mural subverts expectations by replacing a weapon with a bouquet of flowers, a potent symbol of peace cast in a moment traditionally associated with violence. In Banksy’s own words, the wall “essentially turns Palestine into the world’s largest open prison,” a reality that gives the image its lasting urgency and moral weight.
By placing Love Is in the Air on the wall itself, Banksy transformed a structure of control into a canvas of resistance, ensuring the message could not be separated from the context it sought to challenge.
Love Is In The Air/. Flower Thrower by Banksy. Image copyright GraffitiStreet
The image strongly echoes a photograph published in the anarchist magazine Attack! in 1984, which depicted a staged masked figure mid-throw during a street confrontation. The magazine was produced by the group Class War, a radical publication rooted in the UK anarchist movement and closely associated with class conflict and the turbulence of the 1984–85 miners’ strike.
Banksy’s Love Is in the Air directly references this visual history. The mural portrays the same militant stance, baseball cap, bandana, arm drawn back, but replaces the implied weapon with a bouquet of flowers. In doing so, Banksy transforms an image of aggression into one of defiance through peace, recasting violence as a gesture of hope and resistance. The work suggests that protest need not abandon confrontation, but can redirect it, asserting love and solidarity as powerful alternatives to force.
Banksy in Palestine
Banksy’s engagement with the region was not a one-time gesture. He returned in 2005, painting nine additional murals across the West Bank that continued to advocate for freedom, equality, and human dignity for Palestinians. In 2015, Banksy visited the Gaza Strip, using his work to draw global attention to the area.
His commitment to social justice in the region extends beyond the walls themselves. In 2017, Banksy opened The Walled Off Hotel in Bethlehem — a functioning hotel, gallery, and museum described as having “the worst view in the world.” Among its installations is a triptych of Love Is in the Air / Flower Thrower‘, uniquely adorned with real dried flowers, reinforcing the work’s enduring symbolism of peace in the face of conflict.
Together, these projects underline Banksy’s sustained artistic and political presence in the region, where art becomes both witness and resistance.
Love Is In The Air by Banksy. Image copyright GraffitiStreet
Flower Thrower / Love Is in the Air forms part of a wider body of Banksy works created across Palestine over more than a decade. Explore Banksy’s art across Bethlehem, the West Bank and Gaza.
Banksy Love Is in the Air: Prints and Editions
Love Is in the Air is one of Banksy’s most recognisable images and has appeared across street works, canvases and print editions. Early authenticated canvas versions date to 2002, followed by the Pictures on Walls screenprint in 2003, issued in an edition of 500, including 50 signed examples. At the time, unsigned prints were available for £40 and signed editions for £80, prices that offer a remarkable perspective on Banksy’s early market and the significance the image has since acquired.
Love Is In The Air by Banksy. Image copyright GraffitiStreet
GDP Flower Thrower
GDP Flower Thrower (Grey) (Signed) is a screen print on 1500-micron board, produced in an edition of 300 and first revealed through Banksy’s shop Gross Domestic Product. The work was originally presented as part of the Gross Domestic Product exhibition in Croydon, London in 2019, where it formed part of a carefully curated triptych.
The triptych offered here is framed to the artist’s original specifications, mirroring the presentation used in the Croydon exhibition and reinforcing the work’s direct connection to Banksy’s own display intentions.
Banksy, GDP Flower Thrower Triptych, Gross domestic product Store, Croydon. Image copyright Banksy
Available via GraffitiStreet
Flower Thrower at The Walled Off Hotel
In 2018, Flower Thrower / Love Is in the Air appeared again as a Walled Off Hotel wall-section sculpture, placing Banksy’s famous masked figure and bouquet against a miniature section of the barrier. The sculptural format reconnects the image with the architecture and political context of Palestine, extending its history from street art and print into three-dimensional form.
Banksy Walled Off Hotel Wall Section Love Is In The Air – Flower Thrower (2018). Available via GraffitiStreet
Read about the Significance of Banksy’s Collectables at the Walled Off Hotel.
Banksy’s Book – Wall and Piece
The iconic artwork also features in Banksy’s book Wall and Piece, a title that playfully nods to Leo Tolstoy’s War and Peace. Published in 2005 by Century, Wall and Piece marked Banksy’s fourth book and offered readers an irreverent, visually rich entry point into his world.
Opening with a vivid mix of stencil art, vandalism, quotes, and sharp commentary, the book blurs the boundaries between street and institution and famously including a tongue-in-cheek “exhibition” of Banksy’s work at the Tate Gallery, London. It captures the artist at a pivotal moment, distilling his voice with wit, urgency, and cultural bite.
Packed with some of Banksy’s most insightful and provocative quotes, touching on politics, capitalism, art, and society, Wall and Piece remains a key reference for understanding his practice. In this editorial, we’ve selected ten of the book’s most notable quotes, paired with murals from the past two decades, offering a timely reminder of why Banksy’s words and images continue to resonate.
Banksy’s book, ‘Wall and Piece’
Discover Banksy
It’s no surprise that Love Is in the Air / Flower Thrower remains one of Banksy’s most sought-after works, highly coveted by collectors around the world. If you’re interested in adding this iconic image to your collection, please don’t hesitate to contact us, or explore the Flower Thrower triptych currently available in our online store.
If you can’t find exactly what you’re looking for, our co-founder and Banksy Specialist Rosh Bouroumand would be delighted to help source the right Banksy artwork to suit your taste and budget, offering expert guidance every step of the way.