In 2005 Banksy released a series of works depicting to Tesco brand soups in different colour combinations. ‘Soup Can (Turquoise/Pink)’, limited to an edition of ten pieces, is part of it, being one in 28 colour combinations. While the ‘Soup Can’ theme draws from Pop Art representations in a direct way, and can be considered a reflection on Andy Warhol’s 'Campbell’s Soup Can’ works, Banksy seems to be giving the image a completely different meaning.
Where Warhol appreciated the availability and the recognizability of Cambell’s branded soup cans, Banksy seem too prefer the correlation between Tesco branded soup cans and poverty in Britain. ‘Soup Can (Turquouise/Pink)’ thus serves as a statement on the living conditions of working-class Britain.
Tesco, as a brand, appears in other Banksy works, such as his famous graffiti entitled ‘Every Little Helps’. portraying a group of three children raising and saluting a flag, which is in fact a Tesco shopping bag, Banksy presents issues such as mass-consumption, branding, and its relation to poverty.
