Prints by anonymous street artist Banksy sell big at Sotheby’s online sale

A print of a girl with a pink balloon by Banksy sold for a whopping £375,000 at Sotheby's online auction of prints by the anonymous graffiti artist on Monday. The work, which has been voted Britain's favourite artwork, surpassed its pre-sale estimate of £3,00,000-500,000.

The print was among the 25 lots that went under hammer at the auction that witnessed 96 per cent sale, fetching a total of £1.1 million, against its higher estimate of £1 million. It surpassed its pre-sale estimate of £672,000-1 million.

A second version with the red balloon made £106,250, against its estimated price of £50,000-70,000. An internationally renowned street artist, Banksy has been painting the walls since the early 1990s, and throughout this time, he has managed to keep his identity undisclosed. He is best known for his satirical, powerful work, which he often creates using stencils and spray paint. Another item that sold for higher than its estimated price was "Bomb Love". Estimated at £7,000-9,000, it sold for £27,500. The artwork attracted 22 bids alone.

"On average, the 24 lots sold attracted 12 bids each. Almost half of buyers (47%) were new to Sotheby’s and 30% of bidders were under 40 years old," the auction house said in a statement on Tuesday.   New records were established for several prints, including "Gangsta Rat" (£40,000), "Love Rat" (£60,000), "Di-Faced Tenners" (£30,000), "Applause" (£32,500) and "Grannies" (£30,000). This was Sotheby's second online-only auction of Banksy prints following the company's inaugural auction held in September last year.