Blink-182‘s Mark Hoppus is parting with a famous Banksy painting from his collection, and it could fetch as much as $6.3 million at auction. The 52-year-old rocker has owned the 2005 piece, titled Crude Oil (Vettriano), since 2011. He is now selling it through Sotheby’s in London next month.
This painting is a reinterpretation of Jack Vettriano’s The Singing Butler from 1992. Banksy’s version features the same couple on a beach in formal attire, but with an oil tanker sinking in the background, while men in hazmat suits drag a barrel of toxic waste to shore.
“I’ve loved this painting since the moment Skye and I saw it,” Hoppus shared with the Associated Press. “It’s been part of our homes in both Los Angeles and London.”
The auction house expects the artwork to sell for anywhere between $3.7 million and $6.3 million. Hoppus plans to use the proceeds to support emerging artists and donate to several causes, including the California Fire Foundation, Children’s Hospital Los Angeles, and Cedars Sinai Hematology Oncology Research, as part of his ongoing commitment to charity after his battle with lymphoma, from which he’s now cancer-free.
Sotheby’s describes the artwork as one of Banksy’s most recognizable pieces, embodying his reputation as a cultural provocateur and social commentator. Hoppus also reflected on the link between street art and his love of skateboarding, pointing out the DIY ethos shared by both scenes.
Crude Oil was first showcased in Banksy’s 2005 exhibition, Crude Oils: A Gallery of Re-mixed Masterpieces, Vandalism, and Vermin, which also included reimagined works of classic paintings like Edward Hopper’s Nighthawks and Vincent Van Gogh’s Sunflowers.
