Banksy reveals how he created painting which shredded itself after being sold at auction for over £1m

Tom Powell7 October 2018

Banksy has revealed how he caused one of his most iconic paintings to shred itself seconds after being sold at auction for more than £1 million.

The elusive street artist left the crowd at Sotheby’s London auction house in disbelief when his artwork Girl With Balloon self-destructed moments after going under the hammer.

The spray-painted canvas fetched more than three times its pre-sale estimate at £1,042,000 - but was left hanging in strips after running through a shredder embedded in the frame.

Banksy later claimed in an Instagram video that he secretly built a shredder into the painting a few years ago “in case it was ever put up for auction”.

The clip shows a shredding device being installed inside the frame and then covered up, before it cuts to the auction room where it was sold on Friday evening.

As soon as the auctioneer brings the gavel down, the canvas can be seen being pulled down through the bottom of the frame and emerging in shreds.

Banksy posted a video which showed a shredder being embedded in the frame of the painting
PA

A separate post on Banksy's Instagram account showed the moment - and the shocked reaction of those in the room - with the words "Going, going, gone..."

Sotheby's had noted before the sale that the work's ornate gilded frame was "an integral element of the artwork chosen by Banksy himself".

Following the stunt, Alex Branczik, head of contemporary European art at the auction house, said: "It appears we just got Banksy-ed.”

The Banksy artwork was shredded in front of stunned bidders at a Sotheby's auction
PA

Sotheby’s it was "in discussion about next steps" with the buyer, whose identity was not disclosed. Some art-market watchers say the work could be worth even more in its shredded state.

"We have not experienced this situation in the past, where a painting spontaneously shredded, upon achieving a record for the artist," Mr Branczik said. "We are busily figuring out what this means in an auction context."

Geneva-based artist Pierre Koukjian, who was at the auction, said the buyer was "very lucky" to own a now-historic piece. He called Banksy's prank "a turning point in the history of contemporary and conceptual art."

Stunned onlookers watch as the artwork is destroyed before their eyes
Banksy/Instagram

Mr Koukjian, who has met Banksy, said he is sure he caught a glimpse of the artist in the saleroom amid the confusion of the moment.

Banksy, who has never disclosed his full identity, began his career spray-painting buildings in Bristol, England, and has become one of the world's best-known artists.

"Girl With Balloon," which depicts a small child reaching up toward a heart-shaped red balloon, was originally stencilled on a wall in east London and has been endlessly reproduced, becoming one of Banksy's best-known images.

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