Banksy’s iconic Well Hung Lover to be sold with Bristol building it is painted on

One of Banksy’s most iconic works is being sold at auction with the Bristol building it was created on.

The mural named the Well Hung Lover shows a man hanging from a window as a woman stands by while her betrayed partner angrily searches for him.

Banksy is said to have been unaware that the Georgian building was serving as a sexual health clinic at the time that the painting first went up in 2006. The Frogmore Street organisation has since relocated, although the painting remains.

The artist’s subversive murals and installations are famous worldwide, although his identity has never officially been confirmed. Banksy’s highly valuable and prized work often appears on the sides of buildings and other urban spaces without warning.

Estate agent Hollis Morgan is now selling the Grade II-listed five-floor building complete with its adornment. It is situated in a desirable location on Park Street, being close to Bristol Cathedral and the University of Bristol. Although the basement currently operates as a nightclub, the agent has said there is potential to convert it into student flats.

The property will be sold at a live auction, which will be streamed on 12 February.

The painting is included in a description for the listing, “In addition there is an original Banksy mural (Well Hung Lover) on the Park Street elevation.”

It reads: “It is recognised that street art is created not as a permanent work of art but as a form of protest which is usually, but not always, created illegally and without the permission of the owner of the building.

“As such, the life of any image as a work of art will evolve and change over time depending on how the work weathers or indeed is subsequently painted over or removed.”

open image in gallery

However, it continues, “Accordingly the purchaser will be required to accept a restrictive covenant in the lease ensuring that the image cannot be removed from the building, however, the vendor will not require a positive obligation on the purchaser to maintain the artwork or insure it for as long as it shall remain visible and in place on the building.”

Although a price has not been set yet for the building, a previous property with an early Banksy artwork (Mild Mild West painted in 1999) listed by the same company sold for £835,000, higher than the £750,000 guide price set for it.