BANKSY, KATE MOSS (ORIGINAL COLOURWAY), SIGNED CANVAS, EDITION OF 5, 2005
The Kate Moss print series by Banksy is a direct homage to Andy Warhol's screen prints of the iconic actress and beauty symbol Marilyn Monroe. The limited edition screen print was ultimately produced in six different colourways in 2006, after the release of the first light blue original colourway. This silkscreen on canvas, in the original colourway, was released a year earlier, 2005, as a signed edition of just five.
Borrowing Pop Art’s concept of blurring the lines between High and Low Art, as well as framing familiar items and images of celebrities from mainstream media as contemporary art, Banksy subverts this idea even further by appropriating Warhol’s now historic image.
Banksy is known for reinterpreting other artists work, such as in Choose Your Weapon featuring Keith Haring’s dog and Keep it Spotless featuring Damien Hirst's quintessential spots. Kate Moss is also one of Banksy’s most desirable works for sale, with auction prices for the prints reaching as high as six figures for some works.
In 2011, it was this edition that inspired Banksy to create a unique version for Kate Moss herself, while she was on her honeymoon. When she returned, she found the artwork in her bathroom waiting for her -- who organised Banksy’s access to Moss’s bathroom, and equally, who commissioned the work is not known; but likely to have been someone from Moss’ inner circle.
