Livingstone campaign art auction drops by £215,000

Ken Livingstone has raised almost £15,000 for his campaign war chest with a high-profile art auction.

Thirty artists including Anish Kapoor, Bob and Roberta Smith and Ralph Steadman donated work to the Labour mayoral hopeful’s fighting fund. Last night’s “intimate” event at the Gimpel Fils Gallery in Mayfair attracted around 40 bidders including comedian Tracey Ullman.

However, the sum raised fell far short of the £230,000 boost to Mr Livingstone’s coffers at a similar event four years ago when a mystery bidder paid £195,000 for a painting by graffiti artist Banksy.

Campaign insiders said the Labour candidate was concentrating on a wider range of fundraising events this time round, with more emphasis on online fundraising.

But art market experts suggested that the public mood on politicians could be a factor in the disappointing result. Georgina Adam, from The Art Newspaper, said: “Maybe it’s just disaffection with politicians in general. This is not a judgment on the art market which... is flourishing.”