Fine art prints and photographs can unlock significant short‑term capital when handled by the right specialists. At New Bond Street Pawnbrokers, we offer discreet, auction‑led loans against blue‑chip editions by leading artists, allowing you to release value from your collection without selling.
Whether you hold a single iconic print or a curated portfolio, our team provides clear valuations, competitive terms, and a straightforward process from first enquiry to same‑day transfer. Here is a quick rundown of 10 artists we love to see when you want to pawn prints and photographs
David Hockney
David Hockney is one of Britain’s most celebrated living artists. He’s known for vibrant depictions of domestic life, swimming pools and landscapes, and for a prolific output in printmaking.
Most Hockney prints trade between about £1,000 and £50,000, while major signed editions and complete sets can run from roughly £30,000 up to several hundred thousand pounds, with record prints achieving well into the six‑ and even seven‑figure range at auction.
For anyone who wants to pawn a Hockney print, the depth of this market makes collateral lending straightforward. In the UK, Hockney prints dominate his auction activity, which keeps values transparent and liquidity strong. This situation isexactly what a luxury pawnbroker wants when offering loans on prints.
Notable works include:
- The Arrival of Spring in Woldgate
- A Rake’s Progress
- Illustrations for Six Fairy Tales from the Brothers Grimm
Banksy
Banksy’s satirical stencils have become some of the most recognisable images in contemporary art. This enduring appeal drives a powerful secondary market for his editioned screenprints.
Unsigned prints typically range from about £8,000 to £100,000, while signed prints more commonly sit between roughly £35,000 and £500,000. However, top “Girl with Balloon” examples are in the high hundreds of thousands. In 2024, signed “Girl with Balloon” prints sold for around £190,000–£280,000, and unsigned examples regularly sold for £70,000–£80,000, underscoring demand.
For a client exploring pawning a print by Banksy or looking at loans on street‑art screenprints, that mix of global name recognition and strong liquidity makes these editions excellent collateral.
Notable prints include:
- Girl with Balloon
- Bomb Hugger
- Barcode.
Andy Warhol
Andy Warhol is central to Pop Art. He is renowned for transforming everyday images and celebrity portraits into bold, repeatable screenprints. Most signed edition screenprints typically range from roughly £10,000–£50,000, while more sought‑after images regularly command £100,000–£600,000. At the higher end, complete portfolios like Endangered Species or Flowers have achieved multi‑million‑pound results.
These valuations and popularity make Warhol a model case for collateral lending on prints. His name recognition, transparent auction history, and broad collector base mean that when you pawn your print or seek a loan on a Warhol portfolio, luxury pawnbrokers for fine art can rely on clearly evidenced resale values.
Key screenprints include:
- Marilyn Monroe (Marilyn)
- Flowers
- Mick Jagger.
Yayoi Kusama
Yayoi Kusama is famed for her polka‑dot pumpkins, Infinity Nets, and immersive installations. Additionally, the legendary Japanese artist’s editioned prints and photographs offer a more accessible route into her market than paintings.
Since 2000, Kusama prints have generated close to £50 million in turnover, with most editions trading between about £10,000 and £50,000. Interestingly, the best pumpkin and flower prints can reach £60,000–£90,000 or more. Series such as Pumpkins show hundreds of auction appearances, with peak hammer prices around £115,000, translating into ideal conditions for secured lending on prints.
For a pawnbroker specialising in loans on prints and photographs, Kusama’s global brand and documented price history make her signed editions strong, easily realisable collateral.
Notable works include:
- Pumpkin 2000 (yellow)
- Pumpkin (BT)
- Pumpkin (G).
Roy Lichtenstein
Roy Lichtenstein is a cornerstone of American Pop Art. He is widely celebrated for brilliantly translating comic strips and advertising into large‑scale Ben‑Day dot paintings and prints.
While many of his editions sell in the roughly £1,000–£5,000 band, a significant proportion of signed screenprints now trade between about £10,000 and £50,000. What’s more, rare or iconic images can command six‑ and seven‑figure sums.
Record prints such as Vicki! I — I Thought I Heard Your Voice and Girl in Mirror have sold for around £4.9 million and £4.4 million, while Nudes prints, such as Nude with Yellow Pillow and Nude with Blue Hair, have achieved around £952,000 and £758,000.
For collateral lending on fine art, that mix of global name recognition and heavy trading volume (prints are nearly 90% of his auctioned works) translates into clear benchmarks and relatively swift resale, making Lichtenstein ideal when you pawn a print at the upper end of the market.
Notable works include:
- Crying Girl (1963)
- Sweet Dreams Baby! (1965)
- Shipboard Girl (1965).
Damien Hirst
Damien Hirst is one of Britain’s most prominent contemporary artists. He’s known for pharmaceuticals, butterflies, spots, and skulls, and he has built a substantial market for his editioned prints.
Most Hirst prints sell in roughly the £1,000–£5,000 range, with many reaching up to about £50,000. His exceptional sets or large‑scale editions achieve £60,000–£120,000 or more at auction. In 2024, his print market generated about £2.4 million in sales, reflecting healthy demand across key series such as Spots, Cherry Blossoms, and Butterflies.
For pawnbrokers offering loans on prints, Hirst’s instantly recognisable imagery and extensive recent auction data make his editions attractive collateral. For someone exploring collateral lending on a contemporary collection, a Hirst print is a strong piece to pawn within a mixed portfolio.
Notable series include:
- The Souls
- The Spots
- The Souls on Jacob’s Ladder Take Their Flight.
Cindy Sherman
Cindy Sherman is celebrated for conceptual self‑portrait photographs that probe identity, gender and media stereotypes. Her market sits at the top end of fine art photography, and some of her works have realised between about 20 USD and over 6.7 million USD at auction. Amazingly, the Untitled Film Stills portfolio is at around 6.77 million, and Untitled #96 is at roughly 3.89 million.
Recent data show her photographs averaging around 74,000 USD over 12 months, with classic film stills frequently in the low‑ to mid‑hundreds of thousands.
For a UK luxury pawnbroker, Sherman’s photography is ideal for loans on photographs. Some of the chief reasons include museum‑level prestige, a long, well‑documented auction history, and a global collector base, which create highly bankable collateral when you pawn a photograph at the top of the market.
Notable works include:
- Untitled Film Still #21
- Untitled #96
- Untitled Film Stills portfolio.
Ansel Adams
Ansel Adams is a pre‑eminent American landscape photographer. He’s famed for dramatic black‑and‑white images of the American West and also zone‑system printing.
Smaller or later gelatin silver prints can sell from roughly £1,000–£5,000, while more desirable vintage prints commonly achieve £15,000–£60,000, and outstanding works have exceeded $700,000. A 2024 Sotheby’s sale saw Aspens, Northern New Mexico (Vertical) sell for $720,000, underscoring demand that works for you if you want to raise collateral on an Ansel Adams photo.
Indeed, for loans on photographs, Adams offers global name recognition and a long, transparent auction history, allowing a lender to calibrate facilities carefully when you pawn a photograph collection based on classic black‑and‑white masters.
Notable images include:
- Clearing Winter Storm, Yosemite Valley
- Moonrise, Hernandez, New Mexico
- The Grand Tetons and the Snake River.
Henri Cartier‑Bresson
Henri Cartier‑Bresson, often called the father of modern photojournalism, is celebrated for lyrical black‑and‑white images and the “decisive moment”.
Later or more common prints can change hands for low four figures in pounds, while desirable signed vintage gelatin silver prints can reach the tens of thousands, and the rarest examples have sold for low‑ to mid‑six figures. This range, combined with hundreds of auction results, makes top‑tier Cartier‑Bresson photographs attractive collateral when you pawn a photograph with a luxury pawnbroker. In other words, they offer global name recognition and a broad buyer base.
Notable photographs include:
- Behind the Gare Saint‑Lazare, Paris
- Rue Mouffetard, Paris
- Queen Charlotte’s Ball, London
Richard Avedon
Richard Avedon was a pioneering fashion and portrait photographer, famed for dynamic editorial work and psychologically charged large‑format portraits.
Many of his photographs sell in the low‑ to mid‑five‑figure range in pounds, while the most iconic images now command very substantial sums. For example, in 2020, a large print of Dovima with Elephants, Evening Dress by Dior, Cirque d’Hiver, Paris, 1955, set a record at 1,815,000 USD, and a 1957 Marilyn Monroe portrait has sold for around 882,000 USD.
For a UK luxury pawnbroker, Avedon’s photographs are prime candidates for high‑value loans on photographs: museum‑level status, extensive auction comparables, and global demand make his best prints ideal to use when you pawn a photograph at the very top end of the market.
Notable works include:
- Dovima with Elephants
- Marilyn Monroe, May 6, 1957, New York City
- Avedon’s Beatles Portfolio.
