Monkeys standing in a row, wearing signs around their necks that read “Laugh now, but one day we’ll be in charge”, form one of Banksy’s most recognisable and most reproduced images.

The piece appeared in Banksy’s early 2000s period. Alongside the first street versions, it was soon also produced as a limited screenprint edition. These prints are today among Banksy’s best known works, and among those that sell for the highest prices.

The message itself carries a many layered irony. Some commentators read it directly as a reference to class struggle, the idea that an oppressed group will one day reverse the balance of power. Others read it as a more general warning.

Visually, the signs look handwritten, with a rough, improvised aesthetic, which makes the message feel like a call to revolt rising from the street, from the grassroots.

From an art historical point of view, Laugh Now is regarded as one of Banksy’s most cleverly constructed compositions dealing with social hierarchy and the transience of power.