Banksy’s Famous ‘Girl with Red Balloon’ Painting Self-Destructed After Being Sold at London Auction (Watch Video)
Banksy rose to prominence through a series of graffiti piece across the country.
One of the star attractions at Sotheby’s Contemporary Art Evening Sale in London on Friday was anonymous British street artist Banksy’s ‘Girl with Red Balloon’. The iconic image of a girl reaching out for a red heart-shaped balloon sold for 1.4 million dollars and moments later, a shredder hidden inside the artist’s frame started its work and the art ‘self-destructed’, according to a news release from Sotheby’s. Amedeo Modigliani’s Nude Painting “Nu couché (sur le côté gauche)” Raises More Than $157 Million at Sotheby’s Auction.
On Saturday, a video posted on Banksy’s Instagram account showed the secret shredder being built into the frame. The clip starts with a caption, saying: “A few years ago, I secretly built a shredder into a painting.” The video then shows someone installing the device before another caption, saying: “in case it was ever put up for auction.” The video then shows the moment the painting shredded itself at the auction house on Friday, captured on a mobile phone.
Watch Video of Banksy’s Painting Getting Destroyed
“It appears we just got Banksy-ed,” said Alex Branczik, Sotheby’s senior director and head of contemporary art in Europe. Earlier, Banksy posted a picture of the moment it happened on his Instagram with the words: “Going, going, gone…”
Banksy rose to prominence through a series of graffiti piece across the country. His identity has remained a secret despite much speculation over the years. In 2017, Girl with Balloon originally appeared on a wall in Great Eastern Street, London and was voted the nation’s favourite artwork. Although there’s no word on how the shredder started operating after the auction, though it could have been activated by a remote mechanism.
(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Oct 07, 2018 03:35 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).