LONDON.- An outstanding selection of works by renowned British street artist, Banksy, will go under the hammer at Bonhams first-ever Urban Art sale in Los Angeles, on 29th October 2012.

Ahead of the sale, a number of valuable artworks by Banksy, including Precision Bombing, have been newly discovered in the Bristol area, where the artist spent much of his youth. Banksy started his career as a street artist in Bristol, where he grew up in the 1980s. He developed his recognisable stencil-based images, which gradually appeared in a variety of unusual locations around the city.

The launch of the Urban Art sale in Los Angeles comes after a thriving series of Urban Art auctions in London. Earlier this year, Bonhams held a highly successful Urban Art Sale in New Bond Street, London, with many of the highest selling lots sourced in Bristol.

Banksy’s iconic image, Precision Bombing, estimated at $35,000 – 45,000 (around £ 22,410 - 28,817) will be one of the leading works in Bonhams Los Angeles Urban Art sale, which will feature a number of the artist’s works, as well as pieces by other popular urban artists, including Shepard Fairey, Swoon, Blek le Rat and Beejoir. Other leading Banksy pieces include Winnie the Pooh, estimated at $50,000 – 80,000 (around £ 32,029 - 51,246) and Lenin on Rollerblades, estimated at $30,000 – 50,000 (around £19,207 - 32,014)[1].

Alan Montgomery, Urban Art Specialist of the Contemporary Art Department at Bonhams said: “The market for Banksy is flourishing. It is very encouraging to see people coming forward with extraordinary pieces that have been in their collection since his early exhibitions in Bristol. This area has a fantastic wealth of the artist’s works which collectors bought for relatively low amounts of money in the early days of his career, but which now fetch incredible prices at auction.

“We are noticing a growing international following for Urban Art and especially for works by Banksy, with a number of big-name Hollywood collectors. Los Angeles is fast becoming a hub for urban art, with The Museum of Contemporary Art’s exhibition Art in the Streets held in Los Angeles last year. This is an exciting time for us to launch our first-ever Los Angeles Urban Art sale and we are expecting significant interest from across the globe.”

Bonhams Urban Art specialists Alan Montgomery and Gareth Williams will be visiting the local area to search for further Banksy works.


[1] 1 USD = 0.640586 GBP; 1 GBP = 1.56107 USD (as of 21 May)