‘Paint Pot Angel’ was specially made for 'Banksy Versus Bristol Museum', a top-secret Banksy takeover of Bristol Museum and Art Gallery in 2009. The work became referred to as the ‘Paint Pot Angel’ after Banksy upended a pot of pink paint on the sculpture and left it covering the angel’s head.

The work remained with the museum after the Banksy takeover, which included some 100 works. It took place overnight and was known ahead of time to only a few museum staff. It transformed the institution into “a menagerie of Unnatural History—fishfingers swimming in a gold-fish bowl, hot-dogs and chicken nuggets.” Banksy installed a burned-out ice cream truck in the museum’s entrance and moved works around from their usual places; the spectacle led to lines around the block, with some waiting for up to seven hours.