According to the BBC, 500 works of art by one of Britain’s most notorious outsider artists, Charles Bronson, will be auctioned by Merton-based British auction house David Duggleby Auctioneers. The works belong to a single owner and will be auctioned as a group on March 11.
Bronson, 73, whose real name is Michael Peterson, currently calls himself Charles Salvador. A former bare-knuckle boxer, he was first jailed at age 21 for armed robbery. Attacks on prison inmates and staff, including an incident in which he held an educator hostage for 44 hours, resulted in him spending much of his life behind bars. He is currently serving a life sentence, most of which has been spent in solitary confinement.
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The works in the sale were created using crayon, ink and pencil on paper and deal with themes of loneliness and endurance, according to the auction house. Auctioneer David Duggleby and expert Coralie Thomson told the BBC that many of the works were created based on old prison documents due to the scarcity of art materials within prisons.
Displays and sales of Bronson’s work have sparked controversy in the past: in 2010, a painting displayed in a London Underground station as part of a public art project was attacked by a victims’ group and then mysteriously disappeared; in 2018, five signed paintings were pulled from an auction to benefit a homeless charity.
Nonetheless, Bronson’s works have sold in the past, with a 2014 auction of 200 works netting £30,000 ($35,000). The current offering is expected to bring in proceeds of £100,000 to £200,000 ($115,000 to $230,000). Through the auction house, the owner of the collection, who asked to remain anonymous, said Bronson would not benefit from the sale. They have not yet revealed what they plan to do with the proceeds.
