Banksy Mural That Was Painted Over At Office Block Flies To Auction
Image via Anderson and Garland
A hidden Banksy artwork has been unearthed in plain sight, and now it’s ready to take flight at auction. Happy Choppers, a 2002 piece featuring the anonymous artist’s signature helicopter motif, is set to be a star attraction at the Spring Fine Art Auction held by Anderson & Garland in Newcastle, England.
Originally gracing an office building in London’s Shoreditch, Happy Choppers met an unfortunate fate when the owner, seemingly oblivious to its artistic value, deemed it a security risk and painted it over. The story takes a dramatic turn in 2008 when the new acquirer, browsing a book on Banksy’s work, stumbles upon a familiar sight: his own building, adorned with the partially obscured Happy Choppers.
Realizing the significance of the find, the new owner embarked on a thorough restoration process with the help of experts at Chris Bull’s Fine Art Restoration Company. The delicate task involved removing layers of paint and graffiti while preserving the original artwork—a painstaking process that took over a year.
“We were astounded to discover that our newly purchased office building was the canvas for an artwork of this significance, and what was more, it had been painted over by the previous owner!” expresses the block’s current owner, who has asked to keep his identity a secret. “Banksy is a real icon of our time. His art is so important to preserve for future generations.”
Happy Choppers is ready to take center stage, albeit in a slightly altered form. Due to its original location, the piece has been adapted to a more manageable size for display in a private setting.
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“One of the many difficulties we had was that the work had been sprayed on render and structurally could not be removed in one piece due to the likely risk of it breaking apart. The decision had to be taken for it to be removed in sections,” explains Bull. “Previous overpaint and localized graffiti was also removed without disturbing Banky’s original Happy Choppers stencil.”
The nearly forgotten mural is estimated to fetch between £500,000 and £700,000 (US$634,000 to US$888,000) at the auction on March 20.
[via Observer and Artnet News, images via Anderson and Garland]
