Banksy says incomplete shredding was a glitch

LONDON: Banksy has posted a new video to his website implying the partial shredding of his Girl With Balloon at a London auction was supposed to have been complete.

The video shows the famously anonymous artist constructing the shredding mechanism inside an ornate frame and pushing a button in a black box to activate the destruction at Sotheby’s in London earlier this month.

The act shocked the crowd, but the winning bidder, a European collector, went ahead and bought it anyway for $US1.4 million )$NZ2.13 million), according to the auction house, which did not name the buyer.

The partial shredding drew speculation the act was a stunt to increase the value of the painting of a young girl reaching for a heartshaped red balloon.

The canvas was shredded to right above the girl’s head, leaving the balloon intact. The end of the new video notes: ‘‘In rehearsals it worked every time . . .’’

A complete shredding of the same design is then shown.

The nearly 3minute long video is titled, Shred the Love, the Director’s cut.

It shows hands and a hooded figure constructing the mechanism, in a studio space, then it rolls on to the outside of Sotheby’s before the auction.

People milling about sipping Champagne and nibbling hors d’oeuvres are next up.

The auction and partial shredding are shown, as is the work being taken off the wall at Sotheby’s and carried out of the room.