The $1.4-million painting was seemingly cut to ribbons using a homemade shredder built into the frame. (Image credit: Sotheby’s)
Love him or hate him, Banksy’s art has fetched a high price over the last decade, with artworks such as “Space Girl and Bird” netting $479, 926, “Monkey Detonator” earning $587, 544, and “Keep it Spotless” netting an incredible $1.7-million. The latest auction from Sotheby’s for his “Girl with Red Balloon” brought in $1.4-million, the second highest price paid for one of his works, but that’s not what makes it astounding, as the masterpiece was shredded as soon as the auction gavel hit its base.
Hidden inside the frame was a homemade shredder that chewed through the canvas after sounding an alarm. Banksy claimed that if this piece ever went to auction, it would be destroyed, and destroyed it was, but was it all an elaborate trick by the 21st-century artist? The video below provides little insight on how Banksy was able to pull it off, but after looking at whatever tech he used, it seems more suspect that someone in the crowd at the auction was part of the ruse.
The video shows a row of X-ACTO blades positioned close to the base of the frame, along with a brief view of the electronics that make up the internal shredder, which looks like a pair of motors to pull the canvas through the blades and maybe some white battery enclosures at the top. It’s hard to tell what exactly is used when he designed the shredder.
Here’s where the speculation comes in- Banksy built that frame for the painting back in 2006, and it has apparently remained closed since that time. Shredders, even the homemade versions, require a steady amount of power to work, so it’s hard to imagine any commercial battery retaining enough power to engage the motors after 12-years. Couple that with a receiver circuit in standby mode waiting to engage the shredder, and the prospect of working drops even lower.
Some have suggested that a switch hidden somewhere on the frame was engaged by an accomplice at the show, as there was a report a person was escorted out of the auction after the winning bid was announced. There are too many anomalies floating around the auction, as well as unanswered questions- Why didn’t anybody notice the weight of the frame, or open up the back to see the condition of the canvas or to confirm it was an actual Banksy? After the painting self-shredded, it was immediately taken away. Did those workers know it was safe to move it, what if there were more traps that were yet to be sprung?
We may never know what the truth is unless the private owner who purchased the artwork reveals what exactly is inside that frame.
I am considering making a shedding picture frame as a project. The utility comes in when you're tired of whatever is in it - shred it. 
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