18.89 million euros
Banksy’s shredder work achieves record price – protest against escalating art market is fueling it now
A half-tattered Banksy picture entitled “Love is in the Bin” was auctioned for a record price on Thursday. The work of the now world-famous graffiti artist from Bristol went under the hammer at the renowned auction house Sotheby’s in London for 16 million pounds, almost 19 million euros. And for the second time – in 2018, the picture, at that time still entitled “Girl with Balloon”, was pulled into a shredder hidden in the frame immediately after its auction. Banksy, whose true identity is still unknown, wanted to criticize the art market with the action. In the eyes of Sotheby’s art critics, Banksy did not destroy the work of art, but created a new one and set an example for anti-establishment art. Nevertheless, it was a surprise for the auction public. The auctioneer Oliver Barker was accordingly relieved on Thursday when he had sealed the sale: “The work is still there, I can hardly believe it.” Who the buyer or buyers are was initially not disclosed.
The hype surrounding Banksy apparently knows no bounds. His work “Girl with Balloon”, which was shredded after an auction, has now achieved almost 19 million euros at Sotheby’s under a new name. Record for a Banksy work.
It was probably the most spectacular action in Banksy’s spectacular career: just auctioned for around 1.2 million euros, his work “Girl with Balloon” almost completely destroyed itself at the push of a button. The legendary artist had a shredder in the frame that went unnoticed built-in.
The action, which Banksy had apparently planned well in advance, hit like a bomb three years ago. Now the work has been auctioned again – in shredded form, mind you. The difference: the value has multiplied. Ultimately, the hammer falls at 16 million pounds (18.89 million euros), the total price including fees is given by the London auction house Sotheby’s at 18.5 million pounds. This means that the picture brings in more at an auction than any other work by the artist.
Has Banksy achieved the opposite of what he was aiming for?
But how can this be explained? Eventually, the idea that the art market continues to escalate becomes entrenched – that would have triggered the opposite of what he had apparently intended for the Briton Banksy, whose true identity is still unknown. The shredder was intended as a criticism of the art market, as the street artist, who was born in 1974 according to Sotheby’s, portrayed on his Instagram account shortly after the campaign. But instead he contributed to the hype and even renamed the work. “Love is in the Bin” is the official name of the partially destroyed picture. Love is in the bucket.
Record sum for shredded art: The work “Girl with Balloon”, which Banksy himself destroyed, achieved the enormous sum of 18.89 million euros at Sotheby’s.
© Sotheby’s / PA Media / DPA
The motif is known worldwide: a girl reaches for a floating heart-shaped balloon – or has just let go of it, the interpretations diverge. The motif first appeared on a wall in London in 2002, since then it has appeared in several versions on walls around the world and has been reproduced countless times as a print. In 2017 “Girl with Balloon” was voted the most popular work of art in Great Britain – and in October 2018 the shredding campaign. Only part of the girl’s head can be seen, the balloon is floating in front of a white background. The rest of the work looks out of the frame below, divided into fine strips. Tens of thousands wanted to see the picture at exhibitions.
“It just has to be Banksy on it …”
The art world was delighted too. Sotheby’s celebrated “Love is in the Bin” as “the first work of art in history to be created live during an auction”. The Guardian newspaper attested Banksy that it was his “greatest work”. “What could be worth more than a Banksy? A shredded Banksy!” Cheered the Daily Telegraph. The unknown European collector who bought the original painting for £ 1.04 million kept it. And now really cashes in.
“It just has to be Banksy and the prices skyrocket,” says a connoisseur of the art market in London, who does not want to be named. High point so far: In March, Banksys redeemed a square foot “Game Changer” painting recognizing the efforts of doctors and nurses in the pandemic, £ 16.8 million for the University Hospital in Southampton, England, and other NHS organizations.
Anonymity fuels the hype
Even smaller prints are not available for less than a few tens of thousands of pounds; a color screen print of “Girl with Balloon” recently sold at the London auction house Bonhams for around 150,000 pounds. With his anonymity, Banksy contributes to the hype, as the art market connoisseur says. If new works emerge, as was the case most recently on the English North Sea coast in mid-August, the coverage is enormous.
And Banksy uses his fame: It is mostly socially critical issues that he addresses with his works. But even the unconventional artist does not seem to be able to capture the art market.