Banksy’s Mobile Lovers appeared in Bristol, United Kingdom, in April 2014. It was created on a wall owned by Broad Plains Boys Club on Clement Street. The artwork depicts an embracing couple being hypnotised by their mobile phones.
Photographs of the artwork were first uploaded to Banksy’s website, before it has been spotted by the public. This sent art fanatics from across the country in search of the British artist’s brand-new piece. It was finally discovered 24-hours later.
Just a few months later, in August 2014, the 120-year-old youth club Broad Plains Boys Club was struggling for funds and risked closing. The club’s owner decided to sell Mobile Lovers to a private collector for £403,000.
Following the sale, the artwork was seized by the police while they investigated who owned the work. In turn, Banksy wrote to the youth club to confirm that they were entitled to the work.
Banksy is renowned for his street artworks, which often use subversive or satirical imagery to tackle subjects such as war, capitalism, hypocrisy and greed. Born in Bristol, UK, in 1974, he has become a household name by creating beautiful and truly thought-provoking art – which is seems to appear in public overnight. Banksy began his career as a graffiti artist and was part of a gang named DryBreadZ Crew. Although he began creating art freehand, he began using stencils in the late ‘90s and his work became widely recognised in the South West of England. In 2005, after many years of local media attention, Banksy’s work on the West Bank barrier, between Israel and Palestine, received significant media coverage by the world’s press.
In October 2013, Banksy took to the streets of New York City; he created one new piece of public artwork for each day of his stay. During his visit, he sold some of his art for as little as $60 – well below the market value of his work.
Despite being world-famous, Banksy’s identity remains officially unknown, in 2008, The Mail on Sunday reported that Banksy is Robin Gunningham – but he denied that he was Banksy. In 2016, The Mail on Sunday say scientists at Queen Mary University of London have used geographic profiling to prove that he is indeed Mr Gunningham.
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