artnet Auctions Urban Art Sale Demonstrates Strong Demand for Urban and Street Art


NEW YORK and BERLIN, July 27 /PRNewswire/ --

artnet Auctions recent Urban Art Sale demonstrated the continued demand
for urban and street art. Eighty-five artworks by 40 artists were sold in the
online auction July 7-23. The sale traced the evolution of urban art from the
1970s to today featuring artworks from virtually every major Urban and Street
artist including Banksy, CRASH (John Matos), Keith Haring, LA II, and Shepard
Fairey.

Spirited Bidding for Original Works by American Graffiti Artists

Original artworks by American graffiti artists CRASH (John Matos) and LA
II (Angel Ortiz) attracted spirited bidding, realizing sold prices well above
their low estimates. Five works by CRASH found buyers, including an untitled
1983 work on paper which realized US$1,540 -- 53% above the estimate of
US$800-1,200. Two works by LA II from the 1980s sparked frenzied bidding. The
first, a work on paper executed in black marker on a red acrylic background
realized US$2,314 -- 75% above the estimate of US$800-US$1,000. The second, a
mixed media work in silver marker on a black background, sold for US$1,925 --
70% above the estimate of US$700-US$900.

Continued demand for Banksy and Shepard Fairey

The sale also showed continued demand for works by contemporary
sensations Banksy and Shepard Fairey. Five signed Banksy prints found buyers,
including Morons (Sepia), 2007 which realized US$7,700 against an estimate of
US$7,000-9,000 and Jack & Jill (Police Kids), 2005 which sold for US$7,040
against an estimate of US$6,000-7,000. Works by Shepard Fairey also attracted
fierce bidding with 15 lots sold. Among them, Rose Girl, 2008 realized
US$1,458, 72% above the estimate of US$500-700 and Israel/Palestine, 2009
sold for US$990, 66% above the estimate of US$400-600.

Global Interest in Urban Art

The sale also demonstrated continued international interest in Urban Art.
From July 7-23, artnet Auctions received over 45,000 daily unique visitors
from over 100 countries including 37,000 first time visitors to the site.
While the auction featured a number of works by American artists, only 50% of
buyers in the sale came from North America. A full 50% of buyers came from 17
different countries in Asia, Europe, Latin America and the Middle East.

"We are delighted with the results of artnet's Urban Art auction," said
Hans Neuendorf, CEO of artnet AG. "artnet Auctions reaches a large
international audience with great curiosity and wide ranging interests. It is
clear from this sale that collectors worldwide are embracing online
auctions."

Visit artnet Auctions at www.artnetonlineauctions.com.

About artnet:

artnet has been online since 1995 and is host to approximately 2,000,000
visitors each month. Through its Fine Art Price Database of over 3.8 million
auction sales results and its Gallery Network of over 2,200 galleries
worldwide, artnet is the leading online resource for the international art
market. With the new Online Auctions, artnet has added a transaction platform
to its successful information services.

www.artnet.com | www.artnet.de | www.artnet.fr

artnet Worldwide Inc., 61 Broadway, 23rd Floor, New York, NY 10006-2701,
U.S.A.

Sarah Bradley +1-212-497-9700 ext. 197 sbradley@artnet.com

© PR Newswire Association LLC.

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