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Napalm, 2004

BY
Napalm, 2004
Editions: 150 signed, 500 unsigned

‘Can’t Beat That Feeling…’

Napalm is probably one of the most poignant and striking print that Banksy created, cementing his position as one of the pioneering political contemporary artists. This artwork is a striking statement against the military-industrialist complex linking warfare with capitalism that Banksy is criticizing all along his oeuvre. More widely, this work also encapsulates a critique of the sometimes disastrous impact of colonialism, and occupation. Banksy reinvents the Pulitzer Prize-winning image of this 9-year-old girl, fleeing a napalm blast naked in fear. By wittingly adding alongside two icons of American consumer culture, Mickey Mouse and Ronald McDonald, the artist creates a sickening juxtaposition with the image of Kim screaming in pain from the napalm burns. Napalm comments not just on the horrors of the Vietnam war, but of the then recent US-led invasion of Iraq in 2003. The comparison of one of the most provocative and horrifying photographs of war with two symbols of American culture highlights the commodification of war.

 

The Terror of War, Photograph by Nick Ut, Vietnam War, 1972
The seemingly innocent figures of those American icons would suggest a more sinister reality of huge corporations in the reckless pursuit of profit, immune from the consequences on the most vulnerable. This work is also known as “Can’t be the feeling”, a clear allusion to the well-known tag-line used by Coca Cola… Obviously, by using two prevalent symbols of American consumerism, Banksy critiques the American consumer culture, warning of the excess of capitalism, and its impact on the population, especially children.

James Pfaff, Welder’s mask session, London, 2004

The famous photograph entitled The Terror of War was taken on 8 June 1972 by photographer Nick Ut during the Vietnam conflict. The following year, the photograph won both the Pulitzer Prize for Spot News Photography and the World Press Photo of the Year. The original photograph shook audiences worldwide to the core with its shocking portrayal of Vietnamese children fleeing from a napalm blast that had just hit their home in Trang Bang village. The focal point of the photograph is a nine-year-old girl named Phan Thi Kim Phuc, running naked in fear down a road alongside other children and soldiers of the Vietnam Army. Despite suffering severe burns to her back, she survived the attack and now lives in Canada. She has since been the focus of a book entitled The Girl in the Picture by author Denise Chong, published in 1996.
 
Damien Hirst and Banksy are known to have great mutual respect for each other. They have collaborated at numerous occasions. Damien Hirst ended up acquiring the original Napalm painting.
 

DESCRIPTION

Napalm

Year: 2004
Medium: Screen-print in colors on wove paper
Size: 50×70 cm (19 5/8 x 27 1/2 inches)
Publisher: Pictures on Walls

Editions

Signed Edition: 150
Unsigned Edition: 500

Artist’s Proof Editions
Napalm (Rainbow AP): 27 signed AP
Napalm (Orange AP):27 signed AP

Special Edition
Serpentine Edition: 50 signed, 29 signed AP

COLORWAYS

Napalm (Orange AP), 2004
Edition: 27 signed AP
Napalm (Rainbow AP), 2004
Edition: 27 signed AP


The Serpentine Edition


The Serpentine Edition is a special release that coincided with a Damien Hirst exhibition at the Serpentine Gallery. As included in “In the Darkest Hour there May be Light”, co-published by the Serpentine Gallery and Other Criteria, London.

 

Napalm (Serpentine Edition), 2006
Digital pigment print in colors on wove paper
30×42 cm
Editions: 50 signed, 29 signed AP
Published by The Serpentine Gallery and Other Criteria London

AUCTION RESULTS

Updated as of 10 March 2023

 


1. Napalm (unsigned)

 

 

Napalm (unsigned), 2004
Numbered 268/500 in pencil, with the publisher’s blindstamp, lower left
Sotheby’s online: 17 August 2022
Estimated: GBP 12,000 – 18,000
GBP 22,680 / USD 27,216

Napalm (unsigned), 2004
Numbered 146/500 with the publisher’s blindstamp, lower left
Sotheby’s London: 19 May 2022
GBP 22,680 / USD 28,123

Napalm (unsigned), 2004
Numbered 106/500 with the publisher’s blindstamp, lower right
Sotheby’s online: 26 April 2022
GBP 30,240 / USD 38,102

Napalm (unsigned), 2004
Numbered 256/500 with the publisher’s blindstamp, lower left
Sotheby’s online: 19 August 2021
GBP 30,240 / USD 40,034
Napalm (unsigned), 2004
Numbered 134/500 with the publisher’s blindstamp, lower left
Sotheby’s online: 18 March 2021

GBP 50,400 / USD 70,056

2. Napalm (signed)

 


Napalm, 2005
Signed and dated in pencil, lower right
Numbered 58/150 in pencil, with the publisher’s blindstamp, lower left
Bonhams London: 13 December 2022
GBP 25,500 / USD 31,555

Napalm (signed), 2004
Signed and dated in pencil, lower right
Numbered and inscribed 59/150 DN in pencil with the publisher’s blindstamp, lower left
Sotheby’s online: 26 April 2022
GBP 75,600 / USD 95,256

Napalm (signed), 2004
Signed and dated in pencil, lower right
Numbered 41/150 in pencil with the publisher’s blindstamp, lower left
Artcurial: 5 July 2021
GBP 73,248 / USD 101,815


3. Other Editions


Napalm (Orange AP) sold once at auction in 2021 at Phillips London on 21 January 2021 for GBP 81,900 (USD 112,000). Napalm (Serpentine) sold twice at auction in 2021, the last time at Forum Auctions on 2 September 2021 for GBP 52,260 (USD 72,641).

Napalm (Orange AP), 2004
Signed, dated, and annotated A/P in pencil, lower right
Numbered 7/27 in pencil, lower left
Phillips London, 21 January 2021
GBP 81,900 / USD 112,000
Napalm (Serpentine Edition), 2006
Signed and dated in pencil, lower right
Inscribed ‘AP 19/29’ in pencil, lower left
Christie’s New-York, 15 April 2021
GBP 44,964 / USD 62,500

Gallery

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