Banksy's Show Me The Monet expected to fetch up to £5m at London auction
Piece is set to become one of the street artist’s most expensive works
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.An oil painting by popular street artist Banksy went on show in London today (18 September) ahead of a livestream auction.
The piece, titled Show Me the Monet, is expected to sell for up to £5m.
Banksy originally created the painting in 2005 as a counterpoint to Claude Monet’s famous work Bridge Over a Pond of Water Lillies.
In it, the famously political artist adorns a recreation of Monet’s scene with shopping trollies and traffic cones.
The work is to be displayed publically in Sotheby’s New Bond Street galleries until tomorrow (19 September) before moving to New York and Hong Kong for further exhibition.
After this, the painting will return to London to be sold, with a guide price set at £3m to £5m at the Modernités/Contemporary auction.
Last year, Banksy’s Devolved Parliament artwork – which depicted British politicians as chimpanzees – was purchased for a staggering £9.9m.
Banksy’s identity has remained a secret throughout his success, with speculation rife as to the artist’s real name.
A recent internet rumour suggested that Banksy was none other than former Art Attack host Neil Buchanan.
Such was the intensity of the theory that Buchanan issued a statement on his website officially denying he was the hit underground artist behind Girl with Balloon.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments