‘100% authentic’ Banksy artworks, $60 each, in N.Y.; only 7 sold?
No matter what opinions you have of Banksy, the anonymous British graffiti artist whose monthlong “residency” on the streets of New York has drawn crowds of curious onlookers, it would be hard to deny his skills as an art-world publicity machine.
Stoking public interest and the eager media with daily updates, he (or it) has made online self-promotion an artistic tool alongside his spray paints and stencils.
Anything Banksy claims must be taken with a degree of skepticism, given the secrecy surrounding the artist’s identity. On Sunday, the artist posted to his official website an update saying that he had set up a stall in Central Park selling original Banksy canvases for the bargain price of $60.
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“Yesterday I set up a stall in the park selling 100% authentic original signed Banksy canvases. For $60 each,” the artist wrote on his site. The artist said the stall was a one-off event and wouldn’t return.
Banksy posted a YouTube video purportedly showing the art stall, which sold $420 worth of art (or the equivalent of just seven canvases) on Sunday. The video identifies one buyer as a man from Chicago who needed to decorate his home and who ended up purchasing four canvases.
The art stall appeared to be located on the edge of Central Park, where many professional and amateur artists set up shop to sell their creations to pedestrians.
The artist’s latest update on Monday showed a new outdoor work that the artist identified as being somewhere in the borough of Queens.
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