BANKSY’S SEMINAL PROTEST ARTWORK
SLAVE LABOUR HEADS TO
JULIEN’S AUCTIONS
STREET & CONTEMPORARY ART AUCTION
"WE CAN’T GUARANTEE THAT OUR BANKSY’S WILL AUTOMATICALLY SHRED OR EXPLODE BUT THEY WILL SELL TO THE HIGHEST BIDDER."- DARREN JULIEN
Jean-Michel Basquiat, Andy Warhol, Keith Haring, Clet Abraham, Kusama, RETNA, Invader, KAWS and More Featured
Wednesday, October 10, 2018
Los Angeles, California – (October 10, 2018) – Julien’s Auctions, the world record-breaking auction house, has announced that the fall edition of its biannual Street and Contemporary Art Auctionwill take place November 14, 2018 at Julien’s Auctions in Los Angeles and live online at www.juliensauctions.com. Front and center will be a piece of one of the most talked about street artists in the news today-Banksy-whose latest at auction made headlines around the world when the work shredded itself seconds after the gavel came down for £1million.
Slave Labour (Bunting Boy) is a black and white aerosol on concrete piece (top photo), embellished with plastic flags executed by Banksy in May 2012 on the outer wall of a Poundland discount store in Wood Green, London (estimate: $600,000-$800,000). The piece is mounted on a custom platform and is accompanied by a clear protective case. Slave Labour depicts a young child on his knees at a sewing machine, diligently producing a string of Union Jack bunting. It is believed to have been created by Banksy as a protest against the use of sweatshops for the manufacture of souvenirs commemorating the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee and the 2012 upcoming Summer Olympics in London. One of the most publicized and poignant examples of Banksy’s social commentary, Slave Labour helped bring international attention to the exploitation of youth.
"We can’t guarantee that our four Banksy’s will automatically shred or explode but they will sell to the highest bidder!" said Darren Julien, President/Chief Executive Officer of Julien’s Auctions.
Other notable Banksy works are also featured in the sale including Crazy Horse (estimate: $100,000-$125,000) (photo left), TV Girl (estimate: $40,000-$60,000) and Applause ($10,000-$15,000). Crazy Horse, a 2013 aerosol on car door with orange traffic cone installation was produced in New York City’s Lower East Side, consisted of two heavily painted vehicles depicting a stampede of horses bearing down on a huddled group of terrified people, and included a phone number through which audio clips could be heard from a 2007 Baghdad airstrike by an Apache helicopter troop with the call-sign "Crazy Horse 18" in which two Reuters correspondents were reportedly killed. The audio and video transmissions from the airstrike, which had been released by Wikileaks in 2010 under the title "Collateral Murder," were shocking due to the apparent indifference of the troop regarding the loss of life, with one soldier saying "Oh well. Well it’s their fault for bringing their kids to a battle."
Installed on October 9, 2013, as part of Banksy’s highly-publicized New York City residency "Better Out Than In," is a reference to a quote attributed to 19th century impressionist painter, Paul Cezanne,...all pictures inside, in the studio, will never be as good as those painted outside." The work is accompanied by a custom-built display stand.. Banksy's Instagram post of this artwork on his personal account can be seen via the following link https://www.instagram.com/p/fQEYojK-we/.
TV Girl (circa 2003/2004) is an aerosol on Burger King sign executed by Banksy in his hometown of Bristol, England. It is accompanied by a signed letter from SWRDA relinquishing ownership of the sign from the building site, and a signed letter from Brandler Galleries regarding the work's authenticity and value. (estimate: $40,000-$60,000) (photo left).
Banksy’s Applause is a 2006 Screenprint on paper signed and dated in pencil lower left and numbered in pencil lower right 73/150 with embossed POW logo (estimate: $10,000-$15,000).
Additional highlights of the auction include Street Art legend Jean-Michel Basquiat and his work Head (Portfolio I) (estimate: $80,000-$100,000) – a 2001 Screenprint on paper from the series published by DeSanctis Carr Fine Art and authorized by the Basquiat Estate (photo left) and Untitled (Portrait with Crown of Thorns II) – 1981 by Basquiat, marker on paper signed and dated in black marker lower right (estimate: $20,000-$40,000).
A rare, personal item of Basquiat’s will also be offered at auction: his black wool Comme Des Garçons coat. (estimate $20,000-$30,000). The coat was in the possession of Basquiat’s last girlfriend Kelle Inman after the artist’s death in 1987. Basquiat is known to have been a fan of the casual, urban streetwear line and modeled on the runway for their Spring/Summer 197 Collection. Several photographs of Basquiat wearing the coat exist including images with Andy Warhol (shown in photo below right), Spike Lee and his mother Matilde Andradas.
Also featured in the auction is Invader with LA_200 – 2018 executed on the side of a Los Angeles law office building (estimate: $20,000-40,000); New York’s pop art and graffiti artist Keith Haring’s Untitled (Robot and Snake) (estimate: $15,000-$20,000) with his 1984 White marker on black cardstock panels work. The sale also features Shephard Fairey with 2012 Arab Woman, (estimate: $6,000-$8,000), a screenprint on embossed paper as well as pop culture provocateur RETNA with Sonia 2 2010 Screenprint on paper, (estimate: $10,000-$15,000.) The November 14 event will also include works by Andy Warhol, Clet Abraham, Kusama, Swoon, Mr. Brainwash, KAWS and more.
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For Inquiries, Please Email info@juliensauctions.com or Call 310-836-1818.
Registration is required to bid in this live auction and can be done online before the sale at the JuliensAuctions.com Registration page to bid by phone, proxy or online at JuliensLive.com/signup/ to bid live online, or by calling (310) 836-1818.
Registration is required to bid in this online exclusive auction and can be done online before the sale at JuliensLive.com/signup/ to bid live online, or by calling (310) 836-1818.