MANILA, Philippines (Updated July 3, 2024; 7:00 p.m.) — Banksy Universe, an exhibit about controversial UK artist Banksy but "is not associated with Banksy in any shape or form," has limited-edition artworks with "a unique piece of" hand-sprayed concrete, whose proceeds will be partly donated to a Philippine non-government organization.
Since Banksy Universe, a collection of the graffiti artist-activist’s works, was opened last May 7 in The M (Metropolitan Museum) in Bonifacio Global City, Taguig City, it has been raffling off a limited number of artworks for a “discounted” price of P68,000 per piece as "an initiative to give back to our early visitors and helping aspiring art collectors begin their journey," a representative of The M said in an e-mail sent to Philstar.com.
Proceeds from the artpieces, said The M, would be partly donated to ChildHope Philippines Foundation Inc., a non-profit organization caring for street children like those in Tondo, Manila.
The lottery is done every two weeks until the exhibit ends in November, and those interested to join are asked to log in their names and contact numbers in a registration table inside the exhibition. If the winner changes his or her mind and is no longer willing to buy a piece, the slot would be raffled off again.
The artwork being raffled off shows a black-and-white sketch of kids enjoying a swing ride, juxtaposed against a war-torn environment. The image, said The M in the e-mail statement, "is simply inspired by the long-running conflict between Israel and Palestine."
"The box set black and white digital image also includes a unique piece of concrete hand-sprayed in either red, green, or both colours, a reference to the Palestinian flag in the frame base," The M noted.
"The artwork comes with a purchase receipt from The Walled Off Hotel," the museum's representative added.
According to Banksy's official authentication arm, Pest Control Office, "all artworks that have been certified as real should be accompanied by a Pest Control Office Certificate of Authentication. Any galleries, online platforms or auction houses that you see selling artworks should have this paperwork to accompany the sale. If not, the work is likely to be a copy."
In Pest Control Office's frequently asked questions page, however, it is stated that "Banksy is not represented by any other gallery or institution. Pest Control is the only point of sale for new work by the artist," and new work by the artist is "currently nothing available."
Likewise, the artist cautioned that "Banksy is not involved or associated with any of them" when it regards to exhibitions about the artist being held in different parts of the world.
Both the “Dismaland” and the “Make this the year YOU discover a new destination” videos are on-view in the “Banksy Universe” exhibit in The M, together with some of the artist’s world-renowned works such as the exhibit’s poster image, “Balloon Girl,” which Sotheby dubbed as "the first artwork in history to have been created live during an auction.”
In October 2018, after “Balloon Girl” was sold to an unnamed European female buyer for £1m (over P74 million), as the gavel hit the block, an alarm sounded within the artwork’s frame, then the painting passed through a shredder hidden within the frame, partially shredding the image. Banksy then posted the shredded image on Instagram with the caption, “Going, going, gone..."
The partially shredded work has since been retitled as “Love is in the Bin,” and was resold by Sotheby's for over £18 million (over P1 billion), making what a newspaper called "quite possibly the biggest prank in art history” also among the biggest turnouts in the history of art auction.