When Banksy, the elusive street artist, painted heart-shaped balloons adorned with band-aids on a Brooklyn warehouse, it turned the unremarkable brick building into an instant art hotspot and playground for graffiti artists.
After the unveiling of the artwork in 2013, an anonymous tagger boldly stepped up, disappointing many onlookers, and spray-painted “Omar Nik” in red next to the balloons.
A few days later, another stencil appeared nearby, reading “I’m a little girl,” followed by the cheeky line “I remember my first tag.” Some speculate that Banksy made a secret return to add this sly touch.
The graffiti tussle didn’t stop there. Another artist attempted to leave a mark but was thwarted by a security guard. Today, the word “shan” remains, a vibrant shade of purple.
Maria Georgiadis, whose family owns the now-defunct warehouse, noted that such graffiti battles are very characteristic of New York. “It looks like there’s a war going on,” she remarked the other day. “They’re literally going to the wall.”
Artwork for auction
The wall section, known as “The Battle for Surviving a Wounded Heart,” will be auctioned on May 21 at Guernsey, a New York auction house.
Georgiadis, a teacher in Brooklyn, feels a mix of emotions about the sale.
Her father, Vassilios Georgiadis, operated a roofing and asbestos company from the warehouse that featured the balloons. He passed away four years ago from a heart attack, and part of the auction’s proceeds will support the American Heart Association.
“He loved this piece and was full of love, so it means a lot to us,” Maria said during a recent visit to the Art Warehouse, where the artwork has been stored for over ten years. “It’s like the heart of a bandage. We all experience hardships, but we keep moving forward, right?”
The wall section is nearly four tons and six feet tall, part of the many guerrilla artworks by the famous British artist during his 2013 New York residency.
At the time, Banksy promoted his work through photographs and quirky audio tracks featuring creaky, helium-induced voices.
Banksy may not respond to the tagger
Arlan Ettinger, president of Guernsey Auction House, mentioned it’s hard to know for certain since Banksy operates in secrecy. Still, he suggested that the well-crafted stencils could indicate Banksy’s subtle way of addressing other artists in the scene.
Ulrich Blanche, an art history lecturer at the University of Heidelberg, praised the stencil’s execution but highlighted that Banksy placed it in a unique location—Red Hook was not particularly easy to reach back then. “Banksy wanted to expose people to parts of New York they hadn’t seen and perhaps learn to love,” he added.
Still, Blanche expressed doubt about the authenticity of the additional stenciled text, arguing it didn’t align with Banksy’s style at the time. “Calling someone a ‘girl’ in that manner isn’t something Banksy would’ve done then; it’s kind of immature,” he noted.
He emphasized the need to preserve Banksy’s work without commercializing it, stating, “These pieces belong to the community and shouldn’t be turned into mere products.”
A representative for Banksy has not responded to requests for comment.
Determining the price is tricky
Maria’s brother, Anastasios, noted that she hoped to keep their father’s work in Red Hook, surrounded by sturdy steel for safe storage. Their father envisioned the piece as a crucial element in future housing and retail developments—a dream that ultimately didn’t materialize, leading the family to sell the property.
Ettinger remarked on the challenge of estimating the piece’s value, given the lack of established precedents for selling Banksy’s works of this magnitude.
In 2018, a Banksy piece from the “Girls with Balloons” series sold in London for $1.4 million.
Maria expressed hope that a future buyer of this “broken heart” would appreciate the beauty and meaning her father saw in the artwork.
When Banksy created the mural, the family business was just recovering from devastating floods caused by Hurricane Sandy. Georgiadis fondly recalled her father’s emotional connection to the simple yet powerful image. “He believed Banksy understood what we were going through,” she shared. “He would say, ‘Can you believe it, Maria? That’s the heart.’”
