Billboards across Bristol were hijacked last week with posters criticising Barclays Bank. 

The new posters were installed in three locations by international artist collective Brandalism, who are known for using subvertising to challenge corporate power, including a similar action in Bristol last year. 

The guerrilla billboards all target Barclays Bank for their continued investments in fossil fuels, which includes fracking and coal. Barclays is the single biggest financier of fossil fuels in Europe. 

Speaking for Brandalism, Tona Merriman said: “The posters showcase the environmental impacts we don’t see in Barclays’ own adverts: the deforestation, the ocean drilling, the oil spills, the wildfires, the threat to wildlife. They’re a corrective, right of reply to the greenwash messaging of Europe’s dirtiest bank.”

“Ahead of COP26, banks like Barclays will tell the world how much they’re investing in renewables. But what’s more significant is how much they continue to pour into fossil fuels. Put simply, it’s not enough to fund the good stuff, they’ve also got to stop funding the bad stuff.”

Similar guerrilla billboards and bus stop posters were installed in 20 other towns and cities across the UK. 

The artwork for the billboards was provided by artists including Darren Cullen, Soofiya, Fokawolf, Merny Wernz, Rhonda Anaconda and F-Art-Attack.