The engine backfires as a taxicab accelerates out of the dark to beat the light on the corner of Broadway and East 12th Street in Manhattan, and suddenly a figure is blown apart. Brake lights splash across the sidewalk and there stands Richard's shadow, haunting the walls in violent repose. And just as suddenly it disappears, painted over in the dark. Today, only one of Richard Hambleton's legendary shadow figures remains on the walls of New York City, quietly tucked away in the rectory of an old church. But not long ago, the man known commonly as the "Godfather of Street Art" had the city practically painted black. For the first time, Sotheby’s is pleased to present a collection of Richard Hambleton's most significant work in Public Intervention: Art of the Street, a groundbreaking online auction celebrating the first generation of New York graffiti and street artists of the 1980s. Bidding opens on Sothebys.com from 24 September – 1 October, with a portion of the proceeds from the sale to benefit the New Museum of Contemporary Art.

Past Auction

Public Intervention: Art of the Street

24 September–1 October 2021 | 10:00 AM EDT | New York