Pak Media
A work by British street artist Banksy that is sensational. Self-cut It fetched 18.5 million pounds — $25.4 million — on Thursday, a record for the artist, shortly after it sold at auction three years ago.
“Love is in the Bin” was offered by Sotheby’s in London, with an estimate of 4 million to 6 million pounds ($5.5 million to $8.2 million). The sale price was more than three times the estimate.
The piece consists of a half-cut canvas in a decorative frame with a spray-painted image of a girl reaching for a heart-shaped red balloon.
TOLGA AKMEN/AFP via Getty Images
When it last sold at Sotheby’s in October 2018, the piece was known as “Girl With Balloon”. Just as an anonymous European buyer placed the winning bid, a hidden shredder embedded in Banksy’s frame whirred into life, leaving half the canvas hanging from the frame in strips.
Sotheby’s described the work created in the stunt as “the ultimate Banksy artwork”.
Banksy, who has never confirmed his full identity, began his career spray painting buildings in Bristol, England and became one of the world’s most famous artists. His mischievous and often satirical images include two male police officers kissing, armed riot police with yellow smiley faces and a chimpanzee emblazoned with the words, “Laugh now, but one day I’ll be in charge.”
Many of his works have sold for several million at auction. In March, a Banksy mural honoring Britain’s health workers, previously painted on a hospital wall, sold at Christie’s for £16.8 million ($23.2 million), a record for the artist.
“Girl with Balloon” was originally stenciled on a wall in East London and has been reproduced endlessly, becoming one of Banksy’s most famous images.
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Source by [CBS News]
