Photo: David Datuna/Instagram
Looking at art can work up an appetite!
Making things even crazier was the fact that the work in question had been sold to a private collector for $120,000, a spokeswoman for the Galerie Perrotin toldNBC News.
Labeling the act an “art performance” called “Hungry Artist,” Datuna can be seen walking up to the work, removing the duct-tape and proceeding to eat the fruit in a video posted to the artist’s Instagram page.
“I love Maurizio Cattelan artwork and I really love this installation. It’s very delicious,” Datuna captioned a series of posts documenting the incident.
“He did not destroy the artwork,” gallery spokesman Lucien Terras toldTheMiami Herald, noting that the banana was always meant to be replaced when necessary. The outlet also noted that the work came with a certificate of authenticity, which was what collectors were really purchasing.
Cattelan made “Comedian” in 3 editions, the spokesperson added, noting that the editions sold for between $120-$150K.
Around 2:00 p.m. local time on Saturday, gallery owner Emmanuel Perrotin and an assistant re-adhered another banana to the wall, according to theMiami Herald.
“Let’s find another banana,” Perrotin can be heard saying in a video shared on Datuna’s account. “He did not eatthebanana, it’s a banana.”
Miami Beach police spokesman Ernesto Rodriguez confirmed to PEOPLE that no arrests were made, nor did they have any interactions with Datuna.
A spokesperson for the gallery also confirmed toThe New York Timesthat no legal action was being taken against Datuna. “It’s all in good spirits,” the spokesperson said. “Perrotin is not pressing any legal charges.”
Poking fun at the situation, on Saturday, Perrotin posted a photo of himself standing beside a banana taped to the wall on an airplane.
“On the way to Berlin… obviously with a banana. Thanks to @artbasel for your understanding. Sorry for the mess. Butplease let’s keep the Banana until the end of the showon my booth,” he wrote.
However, on Sunday it was announced that “Comedian”was being removedfrom the art show.
“This morning at 9am, following recommendations, we removed the installation,” he wrote on Instagram. “The installation caused several uncontrollable crowd movements and the placement of the work on our booth compromised the safety of the artwork around us, including that of our neighbors.”
“When Maurizio first told me about his idea, I never once anticipated that it could become what it is today. ‘Comedian,’ with its simple composition, ultimately offered a complex reflection of ourselves,” he added. “I am eternally grateful to Maurizio for entrusting me with the display of this watershed conceptual work.”
The idea behind the banana is to represent how bananas are “a symbol of global trade, a double entendre, as well as a classic device for humor,” hence Cattelan’s name for the piece, Perrotin previously toldCNN.
The artist was first inspired to make “Comedian” a year ago.
“Back then, Cattelan was thinking of a sculpture that was shaped like a banana,” Perrotin shared in a press release, according to CNN. “Every time he traveled, he brought a banana with him and hung it in his hotel room to find inspiration. He made several models: first in resin, then in bronze and in painted bronze (before) finally coming back to the initial idea of a real banana.”
In September, Cattelan also made headlines when his piece “America” — an 18-carat gold toilet valued at approximately $1.25 million — was stolen from Blenheim Palace, England.
The golden john, which went on public display at the ancestral home of Winston Churchill, was stolen one night in September after burglars broke into the palace, causing “significant damage and flooding,” according to the Thames Valley Police.
source: people.com
