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Video: The Banksy Heist. Sale or Theft? Or Both?
Almost as soon as it went up, it was gone. But did this portion of the elusive Banksy's art get stolen, or sold?
JetSet Graffiti was given this video that shows two people slowly removing a chunk of the artwork in broad daylight from the wall of 410 S. La Brea. They also have learned that "it was the infamous Doug Christmas of Ace Gallery in Los Angeles that organized the removal and impending unauthorized sale of the artwork."
The video's source claims they asked the workers what they were doing, and they responded that "they were hired to remove it, and that it would go into a ‘big collection of art.'" A look at Google Maps' Street View of the building shows a banner with the phone number of Ace Gallery as a contact, which now puts the legitimacy of the piece and the sale in question.
JetSet asserts "the artist never confirmed the work was his, and the piece is now considered counterfeit," adding that it "makes sense for the artist to distance himself from the work now. Banksy never confirmed it was his to begin with, so Ace Gallery and every other greedy art-star fucker can piss off."
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