Banksy beats John Constable as creator of UK’s favourite artwork

Move over John Constable: the nation’s “best-loved” piece of art is now by er, Banksy.

John Constable’s The Hay Wain, which depicts a serene-looking English summer’s day by a river in Suffolk, has been overtaken in favour of a mural by street artist Banksy. The graffiti stencil — originally sprayed onto the wall of a Shoreditch shop in 2002 — displays a girl releasing a heart-shaped balloon into the sky above her.

2,000 people chose their favourite artwork from a list of 20, shaped by arts editors and writers. The list included Peter Blake’s Sgt Pepper album cover (8th), David Hockney’s A Bigger Splash (14th) and Henry Moore’s Reclining Figure (19th).

Only two women were placed among the 20 artists on the shortlist.

The survey was commissioned by Samsung on the occasion of the launch for a new television by the brand which holds over 100 pre-loaded artworks for users to display while the tv is idle.