Banksy sells revamped thrift store painting for $615,000

An oil painting reworked by British street artist Banksy was sold for $615,000, with proceeds going to homeless charity Housing Works in New York. Banksy bought the original painting -- a nature scene -- from a New York charity thrift store for $50 Tuesday, painted in a Nazi sitting on a bench, titled it "The Banality of The Banality of Evil" and sold it online Thursday, The Daily Telegraph reported. The painting was described on Banksy's website as "a thrift store painting vandalized then re-donated to the thrift store." Housing Works has yet to verify the final bid, but said "100 percent of the proceeds from the auction will go toward lifesaving services for people living with and effected by HIV/AIDS, including housing, medical care, job training, legal services, and case management."