Maurizio Cattelan’s latest artwork Comedian, which is a simple-composited art installation with a banana carefully duct-taped to a wall, was eaten by another artist David Datuna during his art performance Hungry Artist that took place at Art Basel Miami.
The banana had to be replaced after the prank, yet no one was sued by Cattelan. The gallery explained– in a statement that no one seems to have challenged—that the consumed banana was simply an “idea” and the artwork was not destroyed. Besides the fruit and the tape, the work which is worth at least $120,000 also came with a certificate of authenticity and a set of replacement instructions.
Another of Cattelan’s controversial pieces, a functioning 18-karat solid gold toilet that could be used during museum visits, was also stolen last September.
Photo from nytimes