|
 "Devolved Parliament", in which chimpanzees replace politicians
in the House of Commons, more than comfortably surpassed its
estimated price tag of 1.5 million to 2 million pounds, with the
auctioneer declaring "history being made" at one point during
the sale which was streamed live.
After bidding that lasted some 13 minutes, the 2009 artwork from
a private collection sold to loud applause for a hammer price of
8.5 million pounds, to which fees are added giving a final price
of 9,879,500 pounds ($12.2 million).
"Record price for a Banksy painting set at auction tonight.
Shame I didn’t still own it," Banksy wrote on his Instagram feed
beside a post quoting art critic Robert Hughes about the value
of artworks.
"... The price of a work of art is now part of its function, its
new job is to sit on the wall and get more expensive. Instead of
being the common property of humankind the way a book is, art
becomes the particular property of someone who can afford it,"
the Instagram post quoted Hughes as saying.
Before Thursday's sale, the auction record for a Banksy work was
$1,870,000 for "Keep it Spotless" which sold at Sotheby's in New
York in 2008, according to the auction house.
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"Devolved Parliament" measures 13 feet (4 m) long, making it
Banksy's largest known canvas, according to Sotheby's.
Despite being painted in 2009, many commentators had drawn
comparisons to current-day politics, namely the increasingly brutish
exchanges in the House of Commons over Britain’s pending departure
from the European Union, or Brexit.
The Bristol-born artist, who keeps his identity a secret, is known
for his political or social-commentary graffiti work that has popped
up in cities around the world.
Thursday's sale came a year after another Banksy canvas, "Girl with
Balloon", shredded itself in front of shocked onlookers at a
Sotheby’s auction just as it was sold.
(Reporting by Marie-Louise Gumuchian; Editing by Catherine Evans and
Jonathan Oatis)
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