Please enjoy this article on artist Banksy written by Kerry Hall here at Quastel Associates; 

You would be hard pushed to find someone in this country who is not familiar with the work of anonymous street artist Banksy. In fact, his distinctive stenciling graffiti is so well known that not only was one of his works (Girl with Balloon) named as the UK’s best loved work of art but Time magazine also selected him as one of the world’s 100 most influential people in 2010. From an outlaw spray-painting the streets of his hometown of Bristol in the 1990’s to a world famous political and social commentator and activist in 2020, it’s been quite the journey.

With this in mind, imagine that it is 2008 and you’ve just admired the work ‘Nola, White Rain’ (see image below) by the relatively unknown (at the time) Banksy in a gallery and have decided to purchase it for your wall for the grand total of £400… This is exactly what happened to one of our clients here at Quastel Associates. To quote our client:

“For me personally I have always enjoyed art and what it represents, the Banksy Nola piece that I was lucky to buy from Pictures on Walls POW in 2008, has always been up on the wall and enjoyed by friends and family.”

His purchase of this particular work, bought for the simple and admirable reason of enjoying what he saw, was a very good investment. Recently realising that it was probably worth insuring for more than the £60,000 he had it on his policy for, he contacted Quastel Associates for an updated valuation. It is now insured for £100,000. In 12 years, that is quite a significant jump! He said:

“More recently Banksy has gained a lot of interest by investors and this has seen the value of his work go up year on year. We have recognised the need for it to be properly insured and Mark and his team at Quastel have been working with our insurer to maintain our cover as the value of the art increases.”

‘Nola’ first appeared on a wall in New Orleans during Banksy’s visit to the city in 2008. When asked about the piece, the artist said that it represents how the things that are there to protect us can also cause us harm. This was just a few years after Hurricane Katrina devastated the city and the work poignantly pointed out the lack of political intervention to help the city in the wake of the flood. It is arguably one of Banksy’s most famous works and the signed print our client purchased is one of 289 made. The work also comes in four different colour variations (with the rain appearing as a different colour), this piece obviously featuring white rain. 

Thankfully all the relevant paperwork of purchase and authenticity for the work of our client's has been kept safely, ensuring the work is recognised for the genuine article it is. He says:

“I would recommend that anyone who buys art recognises the need to keep all the paperwork for provenance as this will make the process of insuring the item much easier and don’t forget to keep an eye on the value of sold similar pieces by the same artist.”