‘Laugh Now, but one day we’ll be in charge’
Laugh Now portrays a forlorn monkey, wearing a sandwich board suggesting that he is oppressed or enslaved. Along with the rat, the monkey is one of Banksy’s most frequently used animal characters, to satirize the nature of humankind. Laugh Now could well be a criticism of the way humans have been treating animals, our primate cousins, whether poaching or capturing them for entertainment, or medical testing. The ominous text on the board is both mocking and threatening, suggesting that the character is preparing an uprising, as if Banksy is warning of an imminent revolution. It is also the artist’s humorous take on Darwin’s theory of evolution.
107.5 x 604.5 cm (42 3/8 x 237 7/8 inches)
Rivington Street, London, 2002
Banksy’s history as a street artist and his efforts to conceal his identity make his artistic figures his only interactive surrogates. Bearing this in mind, the monkeys upon the panel not only assume an anarchistic quality—promising full revenge upon their rise to power—but also make for a fascinating study into the future of street art. And, as his exhibition spaces shift from urban alleyways to galleries, Banksy paints a fascinating commentary on the current state of contemporary art.
Even though no mural remains with this iconic stencil, Banksy realized many originals on various media using the Laugh Now stencil. Those command high prices at auction.
Sotheby’s Hong-Kong, 18 June 2021
USD 2,280,000
76×102 cm (30 x 41 1/8 inches)
Christie’s London, 11 May 2021
GBP 1,460,000 / USD 2,070,000
DESCRIPTION
Laugh Now
Editions
Artist’s Proofs: 69 signed AP
AUCTION RESULTS
Updated as of 1 August 2023
1. Laugh Now (unsigned)
Sotheby’s online: 20 April 2023
Estimated: GBP 30,000 – 40,000
GBP 50,800 / USD 63,238
Laugh Now (unsigned), 2003
Numbered 546/600 in pencil with the publisher’s blindstamp, lower right
———-
Christie’s online: 14 March 2023
Estimated: GBP 30,000 – 50,000
GBP 40,320 / USD 49,594
Laugh Now (unsigned), 2003-2004
Numbered 457/600 in pencil, lower right
———–
Phillips London: 23 January 2023
Estimated: GBP 25,000 – 35,000
GBP 75,600 / USD 92,988
Laugh Now, 2003
Numbered 325/600 in pencil, lower right
———
Sotheby’s online: 17 August 2022
Estimated: GBP 24,000 – 35,000
GBP 37,800 / USD 45,360
Laugh Now, 2004
Numbered 172/600 in pencil, lower right
———
GBP 56,700 / USD 78,813
2. Laugh Now (signed)
Sotheby’s online: 20 April 2023
Estimated: GBP 60,000 – 80,000
GBP 76,200 / USD 94,857
Laugh Now (signed), 2003
Signed in pencil, lower right
Inscribed with a gift, heart and peace symbol, lower left
Aside from the signed and numbered edition of 150
———
Sotheby’s online: 17 August 2022
GBP 75,600 / USD 90,720
Laugh Now (signed AP), 2003
Signed in pencil, lower right
Inscribed AP/15 in pencil with the publisher’s blindstamp, lower right
———–
GBP 100,800 / USD 140,112
Signed in pencil, lower right
Inscribed ‘4 BRENDAN’ with a peace symbol, lower left
aside from the numbered edition of 150
GBP 151,200 / USD 214,704
———-
