Banksy is a semi-anonymous satirical artist whose work grew from the Bristol underground scene and has now reached worldwide acclaim. Banksy vs. the Bristol Museum is his largest show to date.

I got a €20 Ryanair flight from Dublin and had to stand in a queue outside the museum drinking Erdinger for ninety minutes in the sunshine. Under the entrance and a partially deflated blow-up Ronald McDonald, I was a little apprehensive it might not live up to the hype. Though I have been a fan of his work for some time.

The centre of the main foyer was taken up with a burnt-out ice-cream truck, which also served as the information desk. Around this stood five marble statues that fit rather well with the museum’s interior. They included a six-foot version of Michealangelo’s David strapped into a suicide bomber’s jacket and a circus lion that had eaten its tamer. Behind the ice cream truck a robotic policeman in full riot gear rode a child’s fairground pony.

Animatronics seem to be Banksy’s welcome new foray. The far section featured work from the pet shop he opened in Greenwich Village last year and filled with mechanised “animals.” I passed chicken nuggets feeding from barbeque sauce, swimming fish fingers, a featherless and very depressed Tweety Bird and a beret-wearing monkey painting a beach. The highlight, at this point, was a family of nesting CCTV cameras. Banksy was inspired by a chihuahua wearing a diamante necklace he saw walking past a homeless person and wanted to make a point how we spoil some animals and turn others into hot dogs.

Banksy’s work always has a point. I am an amateur critic, like most. For me art must have beauty or meaning. One reason Banksy manages to draw such a massive audience is his ability to slice right through, as well as mock, pretension. Later in the exhibition we’d see an actual Damien Hirst piece of coloured spots defaced with grey paint and a rat holding a brush.

There was also an installation of his work area, complete with stencil templates with a radio debate of his work in the background and blurred-out self-portraits. Most of this was excellent, but there were those that bore worn-out messages or were just plain bad.

This is a large, accessible, and very amusing show. Bristol is a decent arty town with good markets and nice harbour area. However, in the evening it tends to get overrun by hen parties and chavs. There were only a couple of bars (Start The Bus and The Woods) we found that were immune to this and quite cool. It runs to August 31 and admission is free. -Bryan Butler