BANKSY // Sunflowers from Petrol Station, 2005

Sunflowers from Petrol Station is Banksy’s take on Vincent van Gogh’s iconic floral still life. In place of bright, blooming sunflowers, we see a vase of dried, drooping stalks, crisp, lifeless, and shedding petals onto the table below. The thick impasto background nods to the original, but the punchline is pure Banksy: the artist’s name replacing Van Gogh’s in blue script across the vase. What was once a symbol of beauty and hope is now a withered memento mori, offering a deadpan commentary on decay—both environmental and cultural.

 

First exhibited at Crude Oils: A Gallery of Re-mixed Masterpieces, Vandalism and Vermin in London in 2005, this rare hand-painted oil belongs to a standout series where Banksy reimagines Western art history through a satirical lens. Alongside reworkings of Monet, Hopper and Vettriano, Sunflowers from Petrol Station critiques consumerism, pollution, and the commodification of creativity. Once part of the private collection of Sir Paul Smith, it remains one of Banksy’s most poignant oil-on-canvas works, a deadpan bouquet from the age of fossil fuels.

 

Interested in buying or an evaluation?