Banksy’s 'Sunflowers From Petrol Station' to be auctioned by owner Paul Smith

Designer selling Van Gogh inspired painting, valued up to $18m

People take pictures of a new Banksy artwork in Islington, London, in March 2024. Getty Images

A work by Banksy is removed in Peckham, south-east London, in December 2023. Getty Images

Graffiti created by British artist Banksy under a protective screen on the damaged wall of a residential building in Irpin, Ukraine in April 2023. Getty Images

An artwork painted on the side of a property in Herne Bay, Kent in March 2023. PA

The artwork by street artist Banksy, titled 'Valentine's Day Mascara' on the side of a building in Margate, Kent in February 2023. PA

A Reveller walks by a graffiti attributed to Banksy as he arrives at Worthy Farm in Somerset during the Glastonbury Festival in June 2022. Reuters

A Banksy artwork in Nottingham in October 2020. Reuters

Show me the Monet by Banksy at Sotheby's Galleries in London in October 2020. AFP

Banksy's Sunflowers From Petrol Station, inspired by Vincent van Gogh. PA

Banksy captioned the photo of this work Game Changer. Photo: Instagram

A customised stab-proof vest by street artist Banksy at the Design Museum in London. EPA

A Banksy stencil posted on Instagram in June 2020, with a caption asking 'What should we do with the empty plinth in the middle of Bristol?' Photo: Instagram

A Banksy piece inspired by the death of George Floyd and subsequent Black Lives Matter protests. Photo: Instagram

Girl with a Pierced Eardrum, in Bristol. Getty

Banksy released a new piece in his bathroom as he worked from home during the Covid-19 pandemic in March 2020. Photo: Instagram

A Valentine's Day piece by Banksy appeared in Bristol in February 2020. Reuters

A Christmas mural by Banksy in Birmingham, December 2019. The piece made a statement about homelessness. Reuters

Banksy's pop-up shop called Gross Domestic Product in Croydon, London in 2019. AFP

A view of Banksy's migrant child mural, half-submerged in high water in Venice, November 2019. EPA

Devolved Parliament at Sotheby's auction house in London, featuring chimpanzees as MPs in the House of Commons. EPA

A Banksy artwork in Marble Arch, London, at the site of an Extinction Rebellion protest camp. EPA

Love is in the Bin at the Frieder Burda Museum in Baden-Baden, Germany. EPA

There is Always Hope. EPA

Season's Greetings (2018) was painted on a garage in Port Talbot, Wales. Getty

Part of the unauthorised exhibition entitled Banksy, Genius or Vandal? in Madrid, December 2018. EPA

A piece by Banksy, acquired by actor Robin Williams, was among auction items on display in Los Angeles, September 2018. EPA

A Brexit-inspired mural by Banksy in Dover, south-east England. EPA

A veiled woman in mourning beside the Bataclan concert venue in Paris where 90 people where killed by terrorists in November 2015. EPA

An artwork attributed to Banksy showing Napoleon's horse rearing, in Paris, June 2018. EPA

A mural depicting a rat on a popped champagne cork, in Paris, June 2018. EPA

A rat in the inner portion of a clock in New York City, March 2018. EPA

A Banksy mural highlights the imprisonment of Turkish artist and journalist Zehra Dogan, on the Bowery, New York City in February 2019. EPA

A Banksy painting appeared on the first day of the 2017 Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah. EPA

Flying Copper on display in Berlin. EPA

The Bridge Farm Primary School where a new mural appeared during half term in Withchurch, England. The mural was a thanks to the school for naming a school wing after Banksy. EPA

The Son of a Migrant from Syria depicting Apple's Steve Jobs in the refugee camp called The Jungle in Calais, France. EPA

Dismaland, a temporary exhibition that opened at a derelict seafront lido in Weston-Super-Mare, England in 2015. Getty

Bomb Hugger after it was defaced in Hamburg, February 2015. EPA

Banksy appeared to comment on methods used by Britain's intelligence services with this piece in Cheltenham. EPA

The Twin Towers in Tribeca appeared in New York in 2013. EPA

A mural by Banksy in Queens, New York. EPA

Three years after Hurricane Katrina wrought havoc in the Gulf of Mexico, Banksy created some commemorative pieces in New Orleans, Louisiana. EPA

Another mural by Banksy in New Orleans. EPA

A Banksy in London, May 2008. EPA

A piece to mark Queen Elizabeth II's golden jubilee appeared on Clink Street, near London Bridge, in May 2002. EPA

Fashion designer Sir Paul Smith is to auction a Banksy painting, titled Sunflowers From Petrol Station.

The painting, inspired by Van Gogh’s Sunflowers is estimated to fetch between £8.8 million ($12m) and £13.2m ($18m) by auction house Christie’s.

The artwork reimagines Van Gogh’s painting as a withered bunch of sunflowers which have shed their petals.

The 2005 artwork will be displayed in Los Angeles and Hong Kong ahead of its sale in New York in November.

Sir Paul said: “What initially attracted me to Banksy was his confidence and clarity to communicate something exactly as it is, I was so impressed by his observations of what was happening in the world and that remains true of the work he’s doing today.

“His political statements are completely on point, really profound, really brave and consistently delivered in a modern way.

“I was delighted to have the opportunity to be able to own a piece of his work and the sunflower itself presents such a brilliantly unique way of thinking about things.”

Katharine Arnold, Christie’s head of post-war and contemporary art in Europe, said: “Following the record-breaking sale of Game Changer in March – another major oil on canvas by Banksy – we are delighted to offer Sunflowers From Petrol Station this November.

“Belonging to the legendary British designer Sir Paul Smith, the work is an icon within Banksy’s oeuvre, capturing not only his facility as a painter but also the wry humour that he brings to bear upon global issues.

“Here, the sheer comedy of wilted flowers bought from a petrol station becomes a means of highlighting our relationship with art and the environment: both, he reminds us, are transient.”

The painting will be sold on Tuesday, November 9.