Controversial Gorleston Banksy dinghy art could be sold

A seafront mural by the street artist Banksy could be sold off by the local council.

The artwork at Gorleston beach depicted two children clinging to an inflatable dinghy while an adult pumping it up is distracted by their drink.

It was painted over then removed because of sensitivity concerns relating to a three-year-old girl’s death on an inflatable nearby.

Great Yarmouth Borough Council is now considering selling the work.

Over the course of a week in the summer of 2021, several pieces appeared in parts of Norfolk and Suffolk and were eventually verified on social media by the elusive artist.

The Gorleston piece was painted on the side of Gorleston’s model yacht pond as part of the artist’s “Great British Spraycation” series, which saw him create a total of 10 works in the region.

The piece proved controversial at the time and officials quickly decided to paint over the mural, citing what they saw as parallels with the death of Ava-May Littleboy, who died in July 2018 when an inflatable trampoline at Gorleston beach burst.

After it appeared in 2021, the borough council said: “We thank Banksy for all the wonderful artwork and fully appreciate these circumstances would not have been known by the artist.”

The council decided to remove the entire wall section and restore the artwork, in a process costing £14,105.

It cost a further £7,623 to repair the wall, the Local Democracy Reporting Service said.

The image was also removed from Banksy’s website.

The council had considered displaying the artwork in the town’s Time and Tide museum, but decided it would be insensitive in the light of Ava-May’s death.

It is now proposing selling off the piece via auction or private sale and the idea will be considered at a meeting of the borough council on 7 October.

Cabinet members will be asked to consider a recommendation to value and sell the piece.

The remaining money from the sale would be ring-fenced for spending on community projects in the Gorleston area, the council said.