Members of the public are believed to have taken objects from Banksy’s newest art installation in Margate, Kent.

The elusive artist’s latest piece, titled Valentine’s Day Mascara, appeared on the side of a house in the seaside town on 14 February.

It depicted a 1950s housewife with a swollen eye and missing tooth who appeared to have shoved her male partner into a real-life chest freezer.

The artwork appeared to incorporate other objects including a broken garden chair, a frying pan and an empty beer bottle.

The art gallery who are working to transfer the installation to a local exhibition space said all the objects apart from the chest freezer have “gone walkers”.

“We were never able to get to [the objects], that was gone. The important part is the chest freezer – that’s what makes the piece,” Julian Usher, chief executive of the Red Eight Gallery said.

“We’ve actually already this morning had somebody phone in to say they’ve got the frying pan. How do I know it’s that frying pan?

“We’re gonna get everyone phoning up saying ‘I’ve got a chair, I’ve got a frying pan. Can I pay my mortgage off please?'”

The chest freezer was also removed twice – once by the local council and again by the gallery.

Thanet District Council controversially removed the freezer, saying it was “necessary” to carry out works – believed to be the removal of gas – to the freezer for “health and safety reasons”.

The council returned the artwork the following day.

Read more:
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The homeowner that the mural was painted on then requested Red Eight Gallery to remove the artwork to a permanent exhibition space. Red Eight is in talks with The Turner Contemporary Art Gallery in Margate about transferring the piece there.

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As part of this, the chest freezer was removed and a plastic cover was added.

It will take several weeks before civil engineers and building contractors can safely remove the piece.

The homeowner, who wished not to be named, said in a statement that the appearance of the artwork was only expected in their “wildest dreams” and their “key focus is raising the awareness of domestic abuse against women”.

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