NEW YORK and BERLIN, July 7 /PRNewswire/ --

Now through July 23, artnet Auctions is presenting a special online auction of
Urban Art from 1972-Present. The sale traces the evolution of Urban Art from the
1970s to today with a spectacular range of 175 artworks by 60 artists including
Banksy, Jean-Michel Basquiat, CRASH, Faile, Keith Haring, and Mr. Brainwash.

To view the Multimedia News Release, go to:
http://www.prnewswire.com/mnr/artnet/39039/

(Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20090707/NY42488 )

Early New York Graffiti Art

Leading the sale is a collection of early works by some of the most influential
New York Graffiti artists of the 1970s and 1980s. Among the highlights is Hot
Dogs and Mustard, 1972 by Coco 144, a signed spray painting on canvas in the
artist's classic style (estimate: US$25,000-US$35,000). Also featured in this
group is the nine foot steel sculpture Abstract of the Letter A, 1982 by Phase 2
and Douglas Abdell (estimate: US$140,000-US$180,000).

Early works also include 15 masterpieces by ground-breaking graffiti artists
DAZE (Chris Ellis), CRASH (John Matos), and DONDI (Donald White). CRASH began
spray painting subway cars at the early age of 13. His virtuoso style is
captured in seven stunning works including Hallucination #177 (estimate:
US$80,000-US$100,000) and Arcadia Revisited, (estimate: US$55,000-US$85,000)
both from 1987. CRASH's contemporary, DONDI became famous for his innovative
style and elaborate pieces, including Children of the Grave, three whole New
York subway cars painted from 1978-1980. The complexity of his work is evident
in three rare 1983 acrylics offered in the sale, Reflections, Style Maneuver and
Boy Graff (estimates: US$12,000-US$16,000 each).

Graffiti Art Moves Indoors

New York's crackdown on graffiti during the late 1980s drove artists such as
Keith Haring, LA2 (Angel Ortiz) and Jean-Michel Basquiat from subway cars to art
galleries, bringing graffiti art to the commercial mainstream. The sale features
four prints by Keith Haring including Art Attack on AIDS, 1988 and United
Nations - Fight AIDS Worldwide, 1990 which bear witness to the AIDS epidemic of
the late 1980s (estimates: US$2,500-US$3,500 each). Also featured in this group
are three works by Jean-Michel Basquiat executed between 1984 and 2005,
including Jawbone of An Ass, 1985 (estimate: US$20,000-US$30,000).

Contemporary Street Art

Contemporary Street Art figures prominently in the sale, including ten works by
the enormously popular stencil artists Banksy and Blek le Rat. Banksy has gained
international notoriety for both his record-setting sales and headline-grabbing
stunts. The sale showcases eight Banksy screen prints from 2004-2008 including
Morons, 2007, which pokes fun at the art world (estimate: US$7,000-US$9,000).
Also featured in this group is Desert Storm, 2007 by French artist Blek Le Rat,
who is known as the godfather of stencil art (estimate: US$5,000-US$7,000).

Among the other contemporary highlights are 25 works by Shepard Fairey, Faile,
Aiko Nakagawa and Hush who share common origins in stencil art and print-making.
Ten works by artist's collective Faile from 2004-2008 include the classic Faile
image Bunny Boy, 2004 (estimate: US$9,000-US$12,000). Shepard Fairey, who gained
global acclaim for his 2008 Obama Hope poster is represented with six works from
this period, including Peace Bomber (Red Edition), 2008 (estimate:
US$1,200-US$1,500).

Rounding out the sale are recent works by Mr. Brainwash, Chris Johanson, Anthony
Lister and Neck Face. Neck Face stands out due to his violent drawings of
disturbing subjects such as the 2008 Untitled (Grim Reaper) (estimate:
US$800-US$1,200) while Australian-born artist Lister exposes the dark side of
street life in Magic Tricks, 2009 (estimate: US$6,000-US$8,000).

We are delighted to present such a comprehensive collection of Urban and Street
Art, said Hans Neuendorf, CEO of artnet AG. This auction brings together seminal
works by some the most influential Urban and Street artists of the past forty
years.

Browse the sale at www.artnetonlineauctions.com/UrbanArt

About artnet:

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Press Contact: Sarah Bradley +1-212-497-9700 ext. 197 sbradley@artnet.com



SOURCE: artnet

Sarah Bradley, +1-212-497-9700 ext. 197, sbradley@artnet.com. Photo:
http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20090707/NY42488