An auction with a twist: Mona Lisa made of Rubik’s Cubes goes on sale in Paris

PARIS (Reuters) – An image of the Mona Lisa made of 330 Rubik’s Cubes is going on sale in Paris, just down the road from Leonardo da Vinci’s original.

The 2005 work by French urban artist Invader is expected to fetch up to 150,000 euros ($165,000) at the modern art auction, organisers Artcurial said on Monday.

It uses the plastic puzzles’ squares to create a mosaic of the Mona Lisa and her famous smile in garish colours.

“You almost don’t need to see the details. You know it’s the Mona Lisa, simply because of the position, the composition, and that’s what’s magical,” said Arnaud Oliveux, head of Artcurial’s urban art department.

The auction on Feb. 23 coincides with a blockbuster Leonardo da Vinci exhibition at the nearby Louvre, the home of the real Mona Lisa. That show marks the 500th anniversary of the death of the Renaissance master.

Anonymous street artist Invader has made a name for himself fixing ceramic tile mosaics on to the side of buildings across the world, often depicting video game and comic book characters.

(Reporting by Johnny Cotton and Noemie Olive; Writing by Johnny Cotton and Geert De Clercq; Editing by Andrew Heavens)