Banksy Built a Shredder Into a Picture Frame That Destroyed the Art as It Was Sold

On October 5, 2018, Sotheby's auction house in London was selling an iconic Banksy work — "Girl with Balloon" — when the auctioneer's hammer fell at £1.04 million ($1.4 million). The room erupted in applause. Then a buzzing sound emerged from the picture frame.

The painting began to slide downward through a hidden shredder, emerging in strips below the frame. Half of the painting was destroyed before the mechanism stopped. The audience watched in stunned silence.

Banksy had built the shredder into the frame years before, anticipating that the work would eventually be auctioned. He had been waiting.

The Twist Ending

The buyer, after some negotiation, decided to keep the shredded artwork. Banksy retitled the half-destroyed piece "Love Is in the Bin" — and three years later, in 2021, the same buyer resold it at Sotheby's for £18.6 million ($25.4 million) — over 18 times the original price.

Why Is This Significant?

• It is one of the most successful pieces of performance art in history
• It transformed a destruction into an exponential value increase
• It cemented Banksy as one of the most cunning living artists
• It exposed contradictions in the contemporary art market — anti-establishment art selling for millions

The Bigger Picture

Sotheby's later admitted being unaware of the shredder. Banksy released a video showing the construction of the mechanism, including a comment: "The urge to destroy is also a creative urge" — a quote from Picasso. He intended for the entire painting to be shredded, but the mechanism jammed halfway, accidentally creating one of the most famous half-paintings ever made.