A very good friend of mine bought a real Banksy at his first (I think) US showing in LA in the early 2000’s - it’s the “Laugh now…” monkey. She saw it, loved it, and plopped down a few hundred dollars for it, which was a considerable sum since she was an art grad student at the time.
She parted with it at auction a few years ago for about $120k. She had not idea at the time that it would appreciate in value to that extent - she just loved it and went with it, but as a struggling artist it helped pay for needed photography equipment.
I contrast that with thinking about Lars Ulrich making a shitload off of his Basquiat’s in Some Kind of Monster and reflect that at least there’s some justice that occurs in the art world - few and far between but it does happen.
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