Detroit Banksy Mural To Be On Auction in Beverly Hills, Should It Stay In Detroit?

A 7 feet by 7 feet mural from Detroit called “I Remember When All This Was Trees” will be sold alongside a second mural by the same graffiti artist, Banksy. The auction will take place on September 30, 2015 in Beverly Hills.

Banksy, the pseudonym used by a graffiti artist whose work first appeared in Bristol, England, painted the Detroit mural on the wall of the crumbling Packard factory in 2010. The mural is believed to show Banksy’s fingerprints on the red paint can the boy in the piece is carrying.

The Detroit mural is currently owned by a small non-profit called 555 Gallery here in Detroit. The mural is being sold to raise funds for community arts programs. It’s estimated that the mural could be sold for up to $400,000. How 555 Gallery came into possession of the work is controversial in some circles, as the piece was actually created at the Packard Plant and then the gallery removed the piece and put it in their gallery.

The second Banksy mural in the auction is a Bethlehem work called “Donkey Documents.” It shows a donkey having its papers checked by an armed soldier. The mural was one in a series of 2007 political works drawn by Banksy on the concrete barrier dividing the West Bank from Israel.

The Bethlehem mural is even larger than the Detroit piece. It stands 7 feet high and 10.5 feet long. It’s expected to go for $600,000.