Banksy's 'Game Changer' Sells for Record £16.8 Million at Christie's

Key facts

• Banksy's 'Game Changer' sold for £14.4 million hammer (£16.758 million with premium) at Christie's London, setting a new artist record.
• Previous record was 'Devolved Parliament' at Sotheby's London for £9.88 million in October 2019.
• The painting was donated by Banksy to Southampton University Hospital in May 2020 as a tribute to healthcare workers.
• Proceeds support the hospital, NHS staff fund, and other UK healthcare charities; Christie's donated £16 million of its commission to the NHS.
• A reproduction of the work remains at the hospital.
• The auction featured two bidders: one from Christie's London and one online from the British Virgin Islands, with £100,000 increments.
• The sale coincided with the UK anniversary of the first lockdown and remembrance of pandemic victims.
• Christie's coordinated simultaneous auctions in London, New York, and Hong Kong, streamed live on multiple platforms with participants from 36 countries.
• Basquiat's 'Warrior' (1982) sold for £26.2 million (£30.2 million with premium) to an Asian collector via Hong Kong, becoming the highest-value Western artwork offered in Asia.
• Records set for Joy Labinjo, Issy Wood, Claire Tabouret, Jean Fautrier, and Gerhard Richter (works on paper).
• The 20th Century Art auction totaled £150.3 million including premium; The Art of Surreal totaled £48.5 million; combined total £198.7 million with 93% sold.
• Only two lots unsold in the 20th Century Art auction: works by Albert Oehlen and Glenn Brown.
• This was the first major auction post-Brexit, with London as the most active sales room.