The Surprising Amount Convicted Killer Art Is Actually Worth

May 2024 ยท 1 minute read

John Wayne Gacy killed 33 people and became known as the "Killer Clown" because he performed as "Pogo the Clown" in events. To attract his victims, he offered them construction work. After he caught his targets, he sexually abused, tortured, and strangled them (via Biography). He was sentenced to death in 1980 and died in 1994.

According to Distractify, Gacy started to paint before his prison stint, and the serial killer had created over 2,000 canvases by the time he was executed (via Crime Museum). Many of his paintings are self-portraits featuring him as a clown, which are his most famous artwork. He also reproduced cartoon characters, such as the characters from "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs."

Gacy's artwork is as famous as it is controversial. In 1944, after his execution, his attorney auctioned off his artwork. Afterward, some of the buyers burned the pieces in a bonfire in an event attended by 300 people. In 2011, the Arts Factory gallery in Las Vegas launched a polemical exhibition named "Multiples: The Artwork of John Wayne Gacy" (via CNN).

According to Observer, Gacy's paintings today can cost between $6,000 and $175,000. His most expensive artwork was an oil painting of his house featuring the place where he buried his victims.

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