4 - BANKSY (British Street Artist, born 1974)

BANKSY (British Street Artist, born 1974) Tank Lovers' (Deptford, London, 2002). Stencil and spray paint on two metal doors. 160 cm x 120 cm x 7 cm. (62.99 by 47.24 by 2.75 inch.) +/- CONDITION Excellent original condition (Please refer to department for a Condition Report) In accordance with the terms and conditions of this sale and as agreed by bidders upon registering for this auction, all lots are final and will be sold "as-is." PROVENANCE – This artwork comes with a hand written letter of Harvey Haddock from 28thof July 2022, where he mention that this Artwork “Tank Lovers” was part the overall commission for Blur’s 2003 Album “Think Tank”. NOTES This artwork of ‘Think Lovers’ was gifted by Banksy to Harvey Haddock, one of his assistant who lived in Brighton and has never been on the Art Marked. Harvey Haddock was an early friend, assistant, and collaborator of Banksy during the early 2000s. He helped with major projects like Turf War and Crude Oils, served as the physical model for Banksy's parody painting ‘Nighthawks’, and owned many early works of Banksy, such as the sprayed rats on his fridge. Harvey Haddock was also the person who let Banksy into the yard in Deptford (London) in 2002 for creating the “Tank Lovers” series and that was the first time they met and the beginning of a long friendship. On that meeting in Deptford, Harvey was joined by his young son ‘Orson’ en especially for this youngster Banksy sprayed these small “Yellow Birds” in the hand and on the top of the helmet of the ‘Little Space Girls’. PUBLICATIONS – Richard Hessink: Catalogue Raisonné of Banksy’s Street Art, (2nd edition, part one, 2024), No. 297a.