Moments after a famous Banksy painting was sold for more than $1.7 million during a live auction, the piece was shredded from inside its frame.
The anonymous street artist鈥檚 2006 work 鈥淕irl with a Balloon鈥� was the final piece sold at Friday鈥檚 evening auction at Sotheby鈥檚 in London.
Just after it was sold for 1.04 million pounds, an alarm was triggered from within the frame and guests watched stunned as the canvas artwork slipped through the frame and shredded into strips. The auction house has denied having any prior knowledge of the stunt.
Elizabeth Legge, an associate professor in the University of Toronto鈥檚 art department, offered one explanation for the elusive artist鈥檚 surprise.
鈥淗e鈥檚 often said he doesn鈥檛 want hedge fund managers owning his work,鈥� Legge explained. 鈥淗e doesn鈥檛 like the commercial art market.鈥�
of attendees watching the print shred itself with the caption 鈥淕oing, going, gone鈥︹��
how the artist installed the shredder into the frame.
鈥淎 few years ago I secretly built a shredder into a painting in case it was ever put up for auction,鈥� accompanying text on the video stated.
Banksy also included a quote from the artist Picasso in the Instagram post鈥檚 caption. 鈥淭he urge to destroy is also a creative urge,鈥� it read.
Alex Branczik, the auction house鈥檚 head of European contemporary art, said after the stunt, 鈥淚t appears we just got Banksy-ed.鈥�
What鈥檚 next for the buyer?
He went on to tell The Associated Press that the auction house was in discussions about "next steps" with the buyer.
"We have not experienced this situation in the past where a painting spontaneously shredded, upon achieving a record for the artist," he said. "We are busily figuring out what this means in an auction context."
鈥淵ou could argue that the work is now more valuable,鈥� Branczik added in an interview with The Art Newspaper. 鈥淚t鈥檚 certainly the first piece to be spontaneously shredded as an auction ends.鈥�
Adding to the intrigue, a man wearing sunglasses tangled with security guards near the entrance of the auction house,
Anny Shaw, a correspondent with The Art Newspaper, told 麻豆传媒 that those present were 鈥済ob smacked at what was unfolding鈥�
鈥淗e鈥檚 a provocateur,鈥� she added. 鈥淗e certainly got the publicity he would have been after. He鈥檚 a clever man.鈥�
Was Banksy there?
Geneva-based artist Pierre Koukjian was at the auction. Koukjian, who has met Banksy, told The Associated press that he believes he saw the artist in the saleroom as the painting was destroyed.
"What he did is really shocking, in a good way," Koukjian said. "I think it will be historic and people will talk for a long time about it."
With files from The Associated Press
