Two works by Banks that could have been destroyed are for sale this month and could make over £600,000 in total.
A third Banksy will also be sold in the auction at Hansons Auctioneers in Derbyshire on June 20, all from the collection of John Brandler, an authority on the Bristol street artist.
One of the abiding features of Banksy’s work is its value. And also its abiding link to unusual locations.
Two of these items join the list of the artist’s work that was nearly lost because of where it was painted.
Cloud DJ from 1999 was spray-painted on a shop door in Walcot Street in Bath. The work was commissioned, but when the shop was cleared it was nearly lost.
Cloud DJ is a rare, early example of Banksy’s stencil style that developed on the streets of Bristol. Image courtesy of Hansons Auctioneers.
Now, the plywood door panel on which it was painted will be sold with an estimate of £350,000 to £450,000.
Two Rats with Saw, a 2003 piece also on plywood in spray paint, was rescued from an office Banksy used alongside his first business partner. It takes a £145,000 to £165,00 estimate into the sale.
The final piece is Family Target, also created in 2003, which is expected to make between £350,000 and £450,000.
All come from the collection of John Brandler, an Essex gallery owner who has been one of the most consequential – and sometimes controversial – collectors of Banksy’s work.
All three pieces boast exceptional exhibition history, having featured in major global exhibitions from Rome and Palermo to New York’s Bowery and Broadway between 2019 and 2023.
Mr Brandler owns Seasons Greetings, the first Banksy in Wales, a street art piece in Port Talbot the story of which is now told in the play Port Talbot Gotta Banksy.
Mr Brandler said: “Banksy is the only artist I know of whose single painting inspired a stage production,” said Brandler. “It shows the cultural weight his work carries – and these three pieces are no exception. They very nearly disappeared forever. Instead, they’re now part of modern art history.”
Two Rats with Saw is one of a series of works that Banksy made featuring rats. Image courtesy of Hansons Auctioneers.
Charles Hanson, owner of Hansons Auctioneers, said: “These are more than artworks – they are survivors, cultural landmarks, and provocations all rolled into one. We’re proud to be offering them to a global audience. Banksy’s work continues to hold a mirror up to society in a way that’s both playful and powerful – and collectors have responded to that message in extraordinary ways.”
Although Banksy’s real identity is much discussed, he is best known by his pseudonym, that first appeared in the 1990s in Bristol.
The artist’s signature style is of stencilled images with simple, impactful images, almost all with apparent political or social messages.
Banksy’s work can be very valuable.
The 2019 Game Changer paid tribute to the NHS’s work in the COVID 19 pandemic. It was auctioned for £16.8 million (for the NHS) in 2021.
Love is in the Bin sold the same year for £18.6 million. The piece was spontaneously created when the artist’s work Girl With Balloon was part-destroyed by a shredder as it was auctioned for over £1 million. The shredder failed to completely cut up the picture, making a new piece – reportedly the only art work created at auction – that has proved to be exponentially more valuable.
The items for sale in Derbyshire this month are a bargain in comparison and are likely to attract bidders from around the world.
