Sothebysjp-tmagArticle.jpg (Photo : Reuters )
Prominent French street artist Invader asked the Hong Kong authorities last February, "What message would you send to your citizens?," after they removed one of his street-art pieces.
On Jan. 18, Sunday, the China Post confirmed that his recreation of the ceramic representation of the cartoon character Hong Kong Phooey, taken down in Jan. 2014, is slated for auction on Jan. 20, Tuesday.
The artist, 45 years old, first assembled and displayed the piece in a Hong Kong street in the Happy Valley neighborhood. Even though Invader chose a relatively quiet street, authorities removed the 1.3-meter by 2.1-meter (52-inch by 82-inch) tile depiction within several weeks, which, according to the China Post, led to "outrage" from residents.
The "Boundless Contemporary Art" sale at Sotheby's' Hong Kong office, which became the well-known company's first Asian-based auction house in 1973, presented Invader's "ALIAS HK_58" with an HK$1,000,000 to 1,500,000 ($129,000 to 192,000) estimate on Monday.
The purchaser of the artwork, composed of ceramic tiles on a glass panel, will also receive a signed and dated identity card that includes a photo of the original work "in situ."
Based on the Sotheby's Hong Kong website, "ALIAS HK_58" has been allocated the second-highest estimate figure, with Chu Teh-Chun's (Zhu Dequn) "L'Automne" ("Autumn") displayed with an estimate of between 2 and 3 million Hong Kong dollars. The list of other artists featured in Tuesday's auction includes Tracey Emin, whose "Trust Me" piece is estimated to garner a maximum of HK$350,000; Yayoi Kusama; T'Ang Haywen; and Ding Yi.
Invader's 2014 statement also asked the Hong Kong government, "What modern cultural heritage do you want to leave them?," after he explained that he had "never faced a situation where a public authority would systematically and rapidly remove the art from the streets."
