IN THE BANK
Banksy painting of MPs as chimps in Parliament sells for whopping £9.9m at auction
A BANKSY painting of MPs as chimpanzees in the House of Commons sold at auction for a whopping £9.9million last night as the artist said “shame I didn’t still own it”.
The oil painting ‘Devolved Parliament’ shows MPs as monkeys and is 13ft wide.
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Its sale broke the 2008 record for a Banksy artwork which was £1.4million for a Damien Hirst “spot” painting stencilled over by the graffiti artist.
The hammer came down after 13 minutes of bidding breaking its £2m estimate.
The work was first unveiled as part of his exhibition vs Bristol Museum in 2009.
Banksy reacted on Instagram to the sale and said: “”Record price for a Banksy painting set at auction tonight.
“Shame I didn’t still own it.”
Last year, an art collector bid more than £1million on a Banksy painting which self-destructed in a secret shredder.
Girl With Balloon, one of Banksy's most widely recognised works, stunned the crowd at Sotheby's in London when it appeared to self-destruct.
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The framed, stencil spray painting shows a girl reaching towards a heart-shaped balloon and had been the final piece sold, equalling Banksy's previous auction record of £1.04 million.
However, in a twist to be expected from street art's most subversive character, the canvas suddenly passed through a shredder installed in the frame.
Many in the crowd weren't sure if the painting would be worthless after seemingly being destroyed but an art broker believes its value has now gone up. But, art experts said it doubled in value.
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