Hello and welcome back to your English Five a Day on the English Like a Nature podcast.
This is your daily dip into the English language so that slowly but surely, over time, you increase your English vocabulary, improve your listening skills and generally become more confident with the English language.
My name is Anna.
We're on season three and today is week 10, day four of our story following Gabriel's journey across the UK.
Why are we following Gabriel?
Because learning through stories is the best and most effective way to learn.
Now yesterday, Gabriel and Sophie visited a grand stately home with sweeping lawns, curated interiors and even a hedge maze.
But their journey home didn't quite go to plan.
Today, they stay closer to Bristol and explore something very different.
The world of street art, where creativity, politics and controversy often collide.
Supporting materials for Season 3 are available at www.joinelan.com.
Now let's begin with a snapshot of what's to come.
On a guided street art tour in Bristol, Gabriel learns that Banksy's work often uses satire to challenge authority.
The guide explains how many pieces are created using a stencil and discusses whether street art is creative expression or vandalism.
He also introduces the idea of subversion and explains why Banksy doesn't use tags like other graffiti artists.
OK, let's now break down today's target vocabulary.
First, we have the word satire.
Satire.
S-A-T-I-R-E.
This is humour used to criticise or expose something, often politics or society.
For example, the artwork was a satire of modern society.
Next, we have tags, T-A-G-S.
This is a signature or marking left by a graffiti artist.
For example, many street artists use tags to mark their work.
Next we have subversion, subversion, s-u-b-v-e-r-s-i-o-n.
Subversion is challenging or undermining established ideas or authority.
For example, the mural was a clever act of subversion.
Next, we have vandalism.
We spell this V-A-N-D-A-L-I-S-M.
Vandalism.
This is deliberate damage to property.
An example.
Some people consider graffiti to be vandalism.
Stencil A stencil is a template used to create repeated images or designs.
For example...
The artist used a stencil to create sharp, clean shapes.
Fantastic.
Now listen carefully for those words as they appear quite naturally in today's story.
In the end, the issue with the car was just down to a set of worn spark plugs.
Luckily it was Sophie's parents' car and they always kept a spare set in the glove box just in case.
Sophie swapped them quickly and the engine purred smoothly again.
Still, they decided not to risk another long drive, so now they're on a guided walk around Stokes Croft in Bristol.
Welcome to Bristol's Banksy Walk.
Bristol is where Banksy first made his name, and you'll see some of his best-known murals right here on our streets.
Our first stop is the mild, mild west. painted in 1999.
You can see a giant teddy bear throwing a Molotov cocktail at riot police.
It's a political satire about authority and dissent.
The way it was made large, careful shapes tells you it was done with a stencil, even though it's bigger than most stenciled pieces.
The group goes up the road to Frogmore Street.
Here one of Banksy's most famous works Well-Hung Lover, also known as Naked Man Hanging from a Window.
It's a funny play on words, but it's also a highly tense situation, full of danger.
Originally, it appeared without permission, and a lot of people consider this vandalism.
That's the sort of debate that Banksy loves to provoke.
A little further along, at Hanover Place near Spike Island, is The Girl with the Pierced Eardrum.
This is an example of another typical Banksy theme, subversion.
The title comes from the Vermeer painting, Girl with a Pearl Earring.
Banksy has replaced the pearl with a security alarm. you'll notice that Banksy doesn't use tags.
A tag is a type of signature, and other street artists use it to identify ownership.
By not doing it, Banksy is making another statement.
After the tour, Sophie and Gabriel go for a drink in the heart of Stokes Croft.
Oh, this is some great cider.
And the Banksy tour, that was something else.
I mean, Longleat felt so controlled.
Artificial lakes, curated paintings under hedge maze.
But this?
Banksy just pops up anywhere.
Yes, it really makes you think.
The world is full of things that you only notice if you pay attention.
Alright, let's pause there and bring today's vocabulary back into focus.
I will repeat each item twice, leaving a little space for you to repeat after me.
Here goes.
Satire Satire This is humour used to criticise or expose something, often political or societal.
Next, we have, repeat after me, tags.
Tags.
Yes, in the world of graffiti artists, a tag is a signature or marking used to identify a particular artist's work.
Next, repeat after me.
Subversion Subversion Very good.
This is challenging or undermining established ideas or authority.
Next, repeat after me.
Vandalism.
Vandalism.
This is deliberate damage to property.
And finally, stencil, stencil.
This is a template used to create repeated images or designs.
Fantastic.
So, Gabriel has moved from grand estates to raw, expressive street art.
Two very different sides of British culture.
Tomorrow, Gabriel and Sophie visit a coffee festival where all five senses come into play in a surprisingly immersive experience.
That's all from me for today.
As always, if you do find this podcast useful, then just take a second to leave a like, a rating or review.
I very much appreciate it and it helps others to find the podcast too.
I do hope you'll come back again tomorrow.
Until then, take care and goodbye.
