Banksy artwork which appeared in hospital corridor in tribute to medics during pandemic will go up for auction for more than £3m to raise money for NHS
- A Banksy artwork displayed at Southampton General Hospital is up for sale
- The artist has consigned the original canvas of Game Changer for auction
- Auction house Christie’s have put a guide price of between £2.5 and £3.5 million
Banksy is hoping to raise more than £3 million for the NHS with the auction of a painting offering an ‘image of hope’.
Game Changer appeared at Southampton Hospital during the first wave of the pandemic.
Now the anonymous graffiti artist is auctioning the original canvas to raise funds for the NHS, with the reproduction of the work remaining in the hospital.
The Banksy work Game Changer appeared in May during the first lockdown at Southampton General Hospital featuring a young boy playing with a super hero nurse, leaving traditional superheros in a basket
The hand-painted image shows a young boy playing with superhero dolls.
While Batman and Spiderman are discarded in a bin, the child clutches a figure of a masked nurse wearing a cape.
Christie’s said that the image ‘offers an image of hope’ and represents a ‘personal tribute to those who continue to turn the tide of the pandemic’.
Katharine Arnold, co-head, post-war and contemporary art, Europe, at Christie’s, said: ‘Game Changer is a universal tribute to all those fighting worldwide on the front line of this crisis.
‘At a time when we can dare to hope once more, and look at life beyond the pandemic, it is important to reflect on the many symbols of strength and hope we have seen internationally since the beginning of 2020.
‘Banksy’s Game Changer was a beacon of light for the staff and patients at Southampton General Hospital and it was the artist’s wish to then auction it with proceeds benefiting the NHS.
The Game Changer artwork, pictured, has a pre-sale estimate with Christie’s of between £2,500,000 and £3,500,000 when it goes under the hammer on March 23
‘The work pays tribute to the strength and resilience of those who have demonstrated true leadership throughout the pandemic, the staff of our vital NHS.’
When first unveiled, the picture was accompanied by a note: ‘Thanks for all you’re doing. I hope this brightens the place up a bit, even if it’s only black and white.’
Game Changer will be seen outside the hospital for the first time, from the window at Christie’s headquarters in London, from March 8 to 15.
Game Changer will be offered at auction in Christie’s 20th Century Art Evening Sale on March 23, with a pre-sale estimate of £2.5 to £3.5 million.
Banksy was busy during lockdown: The ‘Aachoo!’ mural is not the artist’s first piece with a subtle nod to coronavirus to appear this year
Banksy took to Instagram to share a series of images which showed his bathroom covered in his infamous rat sketches
The Bristol ‘Aachoo!’ mural is not the first artwork from Banksy this year.
The elusive street artist kept himself busy during lockdown.
The last six months has seen a number of his trademark tongue-in-cheek artworks pop up across the UK – and many of them made a nod to Covid.
In April, in the peak of the first national lockdown, he posted an Instagram snap of a version of his famous rat designs getting up to no good in a bathroom.
The comical scene showed the rodents knocking the bathroom mirror to one side, hanging on the light pull, swinging on a towel ring and stepping on a tube of toothpaste.
The anonymous artist captioned the picture: ‘My wife hates it when I work from home’.
A month later a new artwork appeared at Southampton general hospital paying tribute to NHS staff during the coronavirus pandemic.
Titled ‘Game Changer,’ the monochrome painting depicted a young boy playing with a toy nurse over other superhero figurines Batman and Spiderman.
Banksy’s creation, ‘Game Changer’, appeared at Southampton general hospital and paid tribute to the brave NHS frontline staff fighting the coronavirus pandemic
Banksy’s world famous Girl With a Pierced Eardrum painting was also given a coronavirus twist in April.
It depicts a take on Vermeer’s famous Girl with a Pearl Earring, replacing the earring with an outdoor security alarm.
A blue surgical mask was also added to the Bristol mural, although it is not known if this was the artist’s own doing.