21 December 2018
How much does a Banksy weigh?
Staff at King’s College London weighed Banksy’s Dismaland’s ‘Dream Boat’ as part of a charity raffle run by the elusive artist.
For just £2 a ticket, people could guess the weight of the piece. The entry with the closest guess won the piece as a prize, with all the raffle proceeds going to the Help Refugees charity.
Staff at the Centre for Stem Cells & Regenerative Medicine weighed the boat on Saturday 22 December - the correct weight was measured as 11692.2 grams. The winner guessed within 0.49 grams.
Professor Fiona Watt, Director of the Centre for Stem Cells & Regenerative Medicine said: “We were thrilled that the Centre hosted the weighing for this competition. It was a fantastic project and we were very grateful to be able to support this important cause.”
The motorised sculpture was originally created for Banksy’s Dismaland large scale art installation in 2015. It depicts refugees fleeing their country in search of a better life.
Choose Love who ran the campaign said: "Thanks to the tickets sold, over 65,000 hot meals have been paid for, 10,000 children will receive warm winter coats, 6,000 warm blankets and sleeping bags will help people through the cold winter nights. And hundreds of people currently braving these freezing winter months in refugee camps will be able to enjoy a hot shower.
"We've bought every child in Katsikas camp in Greece a new pair of winter shoes. Thousands of mothers across the world will now have nappies and hygiene packs for their children... and this is just the beginning."