Banksy work removed from Venice palazzo for restoration
The removal from the wall of Palazzo San Pantalon was carried out in consultation with people close to the secretive British street artist, according to the Venice-based bank Banca Ifis' art programme that promoted art and culture.
The artwork depicting a shipwrecked child holding a pink smoke bomb and wearing a lifejacket appeared along Rio di San Pantalon in Venice in May 2019, and was acknowledged by Banksy. Marked on online maps, it has become a tourist destination.
But six years of neglect had led to the deterioration of about a third of the work, the bank said.
Banksy's work The Migrant Child is removed from the facade of Palazzo San Pantalon in Venice, Italy, to complete its rescue. (Source: Ifis Art Via AP)
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The restoration was being overseen by Federico Borgogni, who previously removed dust and cleaned the surface before detaching a section of the palazzo's facade overnight yesterday, Banca Ifis said in a statement. The bank was financing the project, but didn't release the cost of the operation.
The bank intended to display the work to the public as part of free cultural events organised by Ifis art once restoration was completed, although no time frame was given.
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