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Oct 14, 2024

Banksy's bullet-proof Union flag vest to be auctioned at Sotheby's

A bullet-proof vest emblazoned with a Union flag by Banksy could sell for up to £300,000 at auction. Sotheby’s said it will be the first item to be auctioned from a collection of five artworks, which

A bullet-proof vest emblazoned with a Union flag by Banksy could sell for up to £300,000 at auction.

Sotheby’s said it will be the first item to be auctioned from a collection of five artworks, which Bristol's elusive street artist displayed in a shop window in Croydon, London, in 2019.

Five years ago, Stormzy wore a similar vest while headlining Glastonbury Festival.

Head of contemporary evening sale at Sotheby’s Emma Baker said: “In a way only Banksy can, he manages to powerfully condense a complex social issue through one redolent object."

The stab-proof vest, which was made from a former police issue garment, features an image of the Union Jack flag and alludes to the high levels of knife crime and gang violence across UK cities.

Ms Baker continued: “Given an iconic stature by Stormzy during his legendary Glastonbury performance, this reinterpretation of a classic piece of modern day police-issue armour is Banksy at his best.

“There is no doubt this artwork is more pertinent now than when the first vest debuted at Glastonbury – an event that saw it become the symbol of a defining cultural moment.”

The artwork will be shown during Frieze Festival, a high-end contemporary art exhibition in London, before it is sold at auction.

It will then be displayed at the company’s New Bond Street Galleries from 3 to 9 October.

On 5 October 2018, Sotheby’s auctioned off Banksy’s 'Girl With Balloon', one of the artist's best known works made in 2006.

Moments after the piece was sold for £1.042m, the canvas of a girl reaching for a heart-shaped balloon shredded itself through the frame.

Later re-named 'Love Is In The Bin', the work returned to auction in 2021 and was sold for a record £18.6m.

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