Banksy work owned by Blink-182 star Mark Hoppus predicted to sell for up to £5m

A Banksy painting owned by Blink-182 star Mark Hoppus is to go to auction where it is estimated to fetch between £3 million and £5 million.

Named Crude Oil (Vettriano), the painting has hung in the 52-year-old bass player’s homes in London and Los Angeles after he acquired it with his wife Skye Everly in 2011.

He said: “We loved this painting since the moment we saw it. Unmistakably Banksy, but different.

“It’s seen laughter and tears and parties and arguments. Our son has grown up in front of it.

“This painting has meant so much to us and been such an amazing part of our lives, and now I’m excited for it to be out there in the world, seen by as many as possible. Go get ‘em, godspeed.”

Hoppus will use the proceeds from the sale to expand the family’s art collection by buying works by upcoming artists, while a portion of the funds will go to charities including the California Fire Foundation, which helps people impacted by wildfires around LA.

The singer added: “Coming back to punk rock, one aspect of the community I always hold dear is, if you get lucky enough to gain success, you bring your friends with you.

“Larger bands bring smaller bands on tour. We support one another from within.

“I want to take some of the money from the sale of this painting and use it to buy works from younger, upcoming artists.

“We were lucky enough to find Crude Oil (Vettriano) in our lives, and it’ll help us support more art and artists. I want to be a f****** Medici.”

Hoppus was diagnosed with stage four diffuse large B-cell lymphoma in June 2021, but announced he was free of cancer in September that year after months of chemotherapy.

The Banksy work will headline Sotheby’s Modern And Contemporary Evening Auction on March 4 in London, and will go on display at Sotheby’s New York from February 18 to 20, before heading to London for the Sotheby’s preview exhibition from February 26 to the sale day.

The painting, which Hoppus said brought “joy and anger, and hope and scepticism”, was first exhibited in Banksy’s 2005 exhibition Crude Oils: A Gallery Of Re-Mixed Masterpieces, Vandalism And Vermin.

It is a reimagining of Jack Vettriano’s The Singing Butler, which was painted in 1992, to tackle environmental issues, pollution and capitalism, according to Sotheby’s experts.

The sale comes after Banksy’s Piranhas work was donated to the new London Museum site, which will open in Smithfield next year.

The graffitied police sentry box made headlines last summer when it appeared as part of the street artist’s animal-themed collection in the capital, which concluded with a gorilla appearing to lift up a shutter on the entrance to London Zoo.

Blink-182, formed in 1992 by Hoppus, guitarist and vocalist Tom DeLonge and drummer Travis Barker, came to define the pop punk genre, with hits such as What’s My Age Again? and All The Small Things.

Hoppus will publish his memoir Fahrenheit-182 in April, detailing his life and career with the group.