Banksy Shreds Painting After It's Auctioned Off

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When you think about it, what people are really buying is "the Banksy experience."
Thankfully, places like IKEA don't provide the same experience.
 
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NOT ON PURPOSE.
 
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I would say that there is a haunting similarly between the fate of a Banksy painting and an Ikea piece.

McSweeney's Internet Tendancies said:
A FAREWELL TO HEMNES: ERNEST HEMINGWAY ASSEMBLES AN IKEA DAYBED FRAME WITH THREE DRAWERS

I pulled the Hemnes assembly instructions from my field jacket and looked again at the little man. He held the line, true and pure, even when the drawing made clear that he himself could not understand the instructions he was trying to follow. His smile collapsed as the Hemnes had.

This is what happens, I thought. You might make sport of their meatballs, but in the end the Swedes get the better of you.

After a while I walked in the rain to the river where I tore the little man to pieces and threw him to the trout.
 

eku zhong

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That was my first thought, too -- that this is criminal damage, and it must have occurred to Bansky and his associates, too. This is why I'm wondering who sent the piece to auction. I don't think we know who the seller is.

I'm wondering if the seller is not, in fact, Bansky himself, possibly acting through an agent. That would remove his criminal liability, assuming (as I think is probably the case, that the seller owns the painting until payment is received).
I don't know. The shredder was part of the original piece. It was built in by the artist.

If he had grabbed the painting off the wall and ripped it from its frame and shredded it, then it would be criminal damage, but since the artist sold the painting originally WITH the shredder imbedded, then it was just a function of the art.

IMHO that is.
 

Sid

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Never thought of that. Good point eku.
 
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I don't know. The shredder was part of the original piece. It was built in by the artist.

If he had grabbed the painting off the wall and ripped it from its frame and shredded it, then it would be criminal damage, but since the artist sold the painting originally WITH the shredder imbedded, then it was just a function of the art.

IMHO that is.
It could be a problem if Banksy included a self-destruct mechanism and failed to inform the person that they sold it to.

Which, again, is part of why I think Bansky was probably the seller, either directly or indirectly. An insurance appraisal/cataloging of the piece would have looked at why the frame is so deep and bottom-heavy (there is a metal plate in the video of Banksy framing the work). An examination would have turned up at the very least that something was up. I would have taken the backing off the frame to inspect the anomaly if I were cataloging it, and I expect most trained curators or appraisers would have done the same.
 
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Hi strangers. Your conversation is fascinating and I couldn't resist registering just to say a few things!

1. If the person who bought this artwork is a Banksy fan then it's hard to imagine how they could be anything but thrilled by the anarchy of what happened to their purchase.
2. If the person who bought this artwork did so for investment reasons, then it's hard to imagine how they could be anything but thrilled by such a (probable) fast and significant return on their investment.
3. As the work was sold in London, regulations which require goods to be as described would likely protect the final bidder, assuming they wish to cancel the sale. Sotheby's is also liable for any damage to sold items on their premises for thirty days.
4. Salvador Dali once urinated all over one of Andy Warhol's Marilyn screenprints while it was being exhibited. He is not a great artist to bring into the discussion if 'destruction of art' is your problem with what happened here.

I like some of Dali's artworks but I find it hard to get sentimental about him due to credible rumors he was a wife-beating fascist sympathizer. It's not a good look really, is it?
 

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I don't know. The shredder was part of the original piece. It was built in by the artist.

If he had grabbed the painting off the wall and ripped it from its frame and shredded it, then it would be criminal damage, but since the artist sold the painting originally WITH the shredder imbedded, then it was just a function of the art.

IMHO that is.
In other words, an undocumented feature rather than a bug?
 

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Weeel, I dunno, depends on how the owner feels about the act of shredding. If it were mine, I would preserve it exactly as is, with the painting dangling from the shredder. I would then have a totally unique version of this (otherwise not particularly interesting) work. I mean, the original painting of the girl letting her heart balloon fly is, to me, a little Hallmark-ish.
From a conservation standpoint, that would be a less than ideal option. The strips hanging from the frame will vibrate since they are unsupported and exposed to air currents. That will eventually lead to paint loss and weakening of the support layer, especially at the joint. The exposed portions will also receive more exposure to UV light and air pollution than the protected half. There is also the probability that the metal parts of the mechanism will rust at some point, causing discoloration, acid damage, and eventually breakage. They should be separated from the painting (ideally in place) and protected with microcrystalline wax.
 

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4. Salvador Dali once urinated all over one of Andy Warhol's Marilyn screenprints while it was being exhibited. He is not a great artist to bring into the discussion if 'destruction of art' is your problem with what happened here.
:ROFLMAO:
 

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Even if Banksy wasn't the buyer or seller, isn't he rich enough to cover the damages?

The fact that the frame neatly sliced half the print into what is arguably a display-able work of art in front of a large public auction crowd with the exact timing of the hammer dropping, seems to impy that Banksy foresaw that this stunt would increase the value of the art. It also feels like more of an inside job publicity stunt, than a prank on an unknowing buyer, seller, and auction house.
 
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I don't know. The shredder was part of the original piece. It was built in by the artist.

If he had grabbed the painting off the wall and ripped it from its frame and shredded it, then it would be criminal damage, but since the artist sold the painting originally WITH the shredder imbedded, then it was just a function of the art.

IMHO that is.
Interesting way of looking at it. While the buyer probably appreciates the added value you do have to wonder what would happen if they went to court. Was this a performance by the artist or vandalism?
 

Innula Zenovka

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Interesting way of looking at it. While the buyer probably appreciates the added value you do have to wonder what would happen if they went to court. Was this a performance by the artist or vandalism?
That's why the question of who owned the painting at the time is so important. If the owner was in on the plan, or was Banksy himself, then of course it was performance art. Otherwise, at least as far as an English court would be concerned, it's criminal damage.
 

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No regrets: Buyer keeping Banksy painting that self-destructed - CBC

The winning bidder for a Banksy painting that self-destructed during an auction last week has decided to go through with the purchase, auctioneer Sotheby's said Thursday.

The auction house said a female European collector was the successful bidder, agreeing to pay 1.04 million pounds ($1.8 million Cdn) for Girl with Balloon. But just after the hammer came down, and to the shock of those in the saleroom, the bottom half of the work passed through a shredder concealed in the frame.

Sotheby's said the painting has now been re-titled Love is in the Bin and authenticated by Banksy's Pest Control agency.

Alex Branczik, head of contemporary art for Europe at Sotheby's, says it is "the first artwork in history to have been created live during an auction."
The buyer's identity was not revealed but Sotheby's quoted her as saying: "When the hammer came down last week and the work was shredded, I was at first shocked, but gradually I began to realize that I would end up with my own piece of art history."

....
 

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Also, since I started this thread, I guess I should comment.... I had no idea it would bring out so many ''opposing'' views. I knew people would bring up the marketing aspect but never in a thousand years things like theft, vandalism, or 'the horror' how dare he, lol. Wow.