Banksy sale in Auckland pulls in almost $1m in sales

Banksy's 2003 piece Love is in the Air. Photo / Supplied

Close to $1 million worth of Banksy prints were sold last night at an auction in Auckland.

Two signed pieces were among a collection of Banksy pieces sold at the International Art Centre in Parnell, in an event director Richard Thomson called "remarkable".

"It would be one of the greatest auctions ever held in New Zealand," he said.

It included the sale of what is now the most expensive Banksy work to be sold in New Zealand, he said.

The piece, Love is in the Air, was projected to go for up to $150,000-$250,000 but sold for $309,000 to a New Zealand buyer.

Jack and Jill - Police Kids was expected to bring in $75,000. It sold for $117,500. Photo / supplied

Flying Copper sold for $92,000, also to a New Zealand buyer, well above the $50-75k it was tipped to go for.

Banksy's Jack and Jill - Police Kids went for $117,500. It was expected to go for up to $75k.

The Napalm print, signed by Banksy, was on offer tonight. Photo / supplied.

Napalm, a 2005 work signed by Banksy, sold for $105,000 to someone in the room, much higher than the predicted $60,000.

The second signed print, Monkey Queen, was expected to go for somewhere between $30-40k, but ended up going for a cool $105,000.

The Banksy work Monkey Queen was on sale tonight in Auckland. Photo / supplied

The pieces were part of a larger collection on sale last night, which also included work from Charles Frederick Goldie.

The Goldie work Harieta Huirua - A Chieftainess of the Tuhourangi Tribe went for $521,000.

The other Goldie, Tumai Tawhiti, Chieftain of Ngati Raukawa, Te Arawa, sold for $309,000. It was predicted to bring up to $350,000.

Thomson says the large sales are an exciting development for the art market in New Zealand.

"We're on the world stage."

In total, the auction pulled in close to $4 million in sales, he said.

Thomson said people from around the world had their eyes on the sale, with some using the centre's new bidding app to take part in the auction from home.

Leading up to the sale, bidders from as far as Holland, Italy and Japan had shown interest alongside quite a few enquiries from New Zealanders.

"[Banksy] is the most popular artist of our generation. He is basically the Andy Warhol of today," Thomson said.

In October, a Banksy artwork sold at the same International Art Centre in Parnell set a world record when it went for $126,000 - twice what is was predicted to reach.

The work, Have A Nice Day, was initially expected to fetch $60,000 at a sale, but to the auction house's delight, a round of excited bidding pushed up the price for the military-themed work which was created nearly 20 years ago.