The owners of the house tore down its wall to sell the mural…

The Coutts, from the coastal town of Lowestoft in the east of England, got a surprise in August 2021. Well, one day, on the wall of the house they rented, a painting by the world-famous street artist, Banksy, appeared – a work depicting a seagull several meters up.

The mural is believed to have significantly increased the value of the property, but it also caused the homeowners a lot of trouble. The city council informed the Coutts that if the painting were to be declared a tourist attraction, they would have to undertake restoration work, at an annual cost of $40,000. pounds (PLN 208,000).

In addition, art lovers began to gather near the house. Banksy’s artwork also attracted thieves… “I had to hire a night watchman to monitor the mural after someone stole part of it and tried to sell it on Facebook,” Garry Coutts told the Daily Mail. Thanks to this protection, it was possible to stop vandals who wanted to cover the mural with white paint.

“At first it was amazing to have a Banksy mural, but after a while it became very stressful. I’m not sure Banksy realizes the unintended consequences his work has on the homeowners,” Coutts said.

The couple finally found a way out of this conflict. They hired a crane to tear down the wall of the building with the seagull on it. This difficult construction operation cost them 200,000. pounds, ie about PLN 1 million.

The Coutts plan to sell the mural to recoup their losses, and also make some money in the process. Art market experts estimate that the statue is worth between £1 million and £3 million. For those who are desperate and think that Lowestoft has been deprived of a valuable attraction, Coutts promise that when they put up a new wall of the house, they will put a replica of the seagull on it. (PAP Life)

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