Banksy's Girl and Balloon on Found Landscape Fetches $18 Million at Fair Warning
On Wednesday, Fair Warning's auction at Tiffany & Co.'s Landmark store in New York saw Banksy's Girl and Balloon on Found Landscape fetch an impressive US $18 million (£13.3 million). This sale ranks it among the three highest auction prices for a Banksy piece. The artwork, part of the Crude Oils series, features a vintage landscape reinterpreted with Banksy's signature balloon. Intense bidding culminated in a phone duel, ultimately securing the piece for an anonymous bidder in the US at the upper estimate, including the buyer's premium. This sale displaces Sunflowers From Petrol Station, previously sold for £10.7 million in 2021, from the top three. The current leaders are Love Is in the Bin, Game Changer, and Girl and Balloon on Found Landscape. First appearing on a London wall in 2002, this image has become emblematic of Banksy's work.
Key facts
- Girl and Balloon on Found Landscape sold for US $18 million (£13.3 million) at Fair Warning auction.
- Auction held at Tiffany & Co.'s Landmark store in New York.
- Work is part of Banksy's Crude Oils series.
- Bidding ended with a phone battle; sold to anonymous US bidder.
- Result places work among three highest auction prices for Banksy.
- Sunflowers From Petrol Station pushed out of top three; sold for £10.7 million at Christie's New York in 2021.
- Top three: Love Is in the Bin (£18.6 million, Sotheby's London 2021), Game Changer (£16.8 million, Christie's London 2021), Girl and Balloon on Found Landscape ($17.94 million).
- Girl with Balloon motif first appeared on a London wall in 2002.
Entities
Artists
- Banksy
Institutions
- Fair Warning
- Tiffany & Co.
- Christie's
- Sotheby's
- GraffitiStreet
- University Hospital Southampton
- NHS
Locations
- New York
- United States
- London
- United Kingdom
- Chichester
- England