Shopper paid C$5 for painting; David Bowie original later sold for C$108,120
A painting purchased for C$5 at a donation center in Ontario was identified as an original work by David Bowie from his 'Dead Heads' series. The artwork subsequently sold at auction for C$108,120, setting a record for the musician's visual art.
Why it matters
This story highlights the intersection of celebrity provenance and the art market, demonstrating how rare items can appreciate significantly in value.
In 2020, a shopper browsing a household goods donation centre in South River, Ontario, spotted a small painting tucked among discarded items and paid just C$5 for it. The buyer soon noticed a label on the reverse reading David Bowie and contacted auction house Cowley Abbott to investigate. After research and correspondence with a Bowie specialist in the UK, experts confirmed the work as an original from the musician's Dead Heads series, and in June 2021 it sold at auction for C$108,120, setting a new global record for a David Bowie artwork, according to a post on Cowleyabbott.ca. Read on to know more here:From a donation bin to a global auctionThe painting, titled D Head XLVI, was found in the most unexpected of places, a donation centre for household goods in Northern Ontario.
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