Last month, Gibson GuitarTown London charity auction at indigO2 in London’s O2 Arena saw a variety of 10-foot Gibson Les Paul guitar sculptures and custom-decorated Gibson SG guitars (also celebrity-signed) sold to raise money for Nordoff-Robbins Music Therapy, The Prince’s Trust and Teenage Cancer Trust. The fiberglass sculpture painted in acrylics by cartoonist and illustrator Rosie Brooks and autographed by Sir Paul McCartney brought the highest bid of the evening, at approximately $123,912.

“I just fancied playing with a big guitar! I think this one will hopefully catch the imagination of the public and whoever is going to buy it at the auction and raise money for The Prince’s Trust, Teenage Cancer Trust and Nordoff-Robbins Music Therapy, which are all great charities,” McCartney said in September when he autographed the sculpture, titled “And The Crowd Goes Wild.”

Other notable sales included sculptures signed by Paul Weller ($16,521), Robert Plant ($8,260), Noel Gallagher ($6,711), Ozzy Osbourne ($6,711), a Les Paul Tribute sculpture by artist Alex Echo ($7,744), and SG guitars signed by or associated with Roger Waters ($21,684), Ronnie Wood ($18,586), Slash ($17,554.20), Nick Mason ($10,842), Jack Bruce and Pete Brown ($8,260), Brian May ($7,228), Jimmy Page ($7,021), Bob Geldof ($6,195), Depeche Mode ($6,195), and the Zutons ($5,163).

Gibson Guitar sponsored the London GuitarTown event that led to last night’s charity auction presented by Julien’s Auctions. From June to September 2007, 30 hand-painted, free standing, 10-foot Gibson Les Paul replica guitar sculptures were on public display at More London on London’s South Bank by City Hall, SE1, while 30 hand-painted and celebrity-signed regular-sized Gibson SG guitars were publicly displayed around The O2 in Greenwich.

“London is one of my favorite European cities with an outstanding musical environment. Gibson GuitarTown London will be a momentous and unique public exhibition, raising money for three fantastic charities with the support of many of Britain’s top musical names. This is our gift to the people of London,” says Henry Juszkiewicz, Chairman and CEO of Gibson Guitar, when the charity effort was launched last spring.

(Home page image: Sir Paul McCartney signs 10-foot Les Paul guitar sculpture. Photo credit: Gibson Guitar/Modern Guitars Magazine)

Source: Modern Guitars Magazine