Italian artist Maurizio Cattelan’s controversial installation involving a banana duct-taped to a wall is once again sparking discussion about the value of art.
This month, the renowned auction house Sotheby’s will auction off one of the three editions of the artwork in New York, with an estimated price of between US$1m and US$1.5m. The winning bidder will receive a banana, a roll of duct tape, a certificate of authenticity, and instructions on how to install the piece.
Cattelan’s piece, titled Comedian, made its debut at the Art Basel Miami fair in 2019 as a limited edition of three. The artwork garnered global attention when it was priced at US$120,000, sparking debates about the essence of art and its worth – especially after the artist revealed that he had bought the banana from a Miami grocery store for about 30 cents.
The banana incident went viral when New York performance artist David Datuna removed and ate the fruit, which was subsequently replaced.
‘Hungry’ performance artist eats $120,000 banana art installation – video
In May 2023, the artwork made headlines once again when a South Korean art student replicated Datuna’s act by taking and consuming the banana from an edition of Comedian displayed at the Leeum Museum of Art in Seoul.
Later in 2023, an edition of Comedian was exhibited at the National Gallery of Victoria in Melbourne as part of their Triennial exhibition, without any incidents.
Sotheby’s has not revealed the source of the edition being auctioned, but stated that the current owner acquired it from one of the original buyers.
In their auction catalogue, the house describes Comedian as a “masterpiece” that “prompted the world to rethink how we define art and the value we place on it”. They draw comparisons to Jeff Koons’ three-edition sculpture Rabbit and Andy Warhol’s series of Marilyn Monroe screen-print paintings, both of which have made significant impacts in the art world.
Cattelan is known for his cheeky and provocative artworks, such as installing a solid gold toilet at the Guggenheim titled America in 2016, and duct-taping his art dealer to a wall for the opening of his exhibition A Perfect Day in 1999. He has a history of pushing boundaries and challenging norms in the art world.
Discussing Comedian in 2019, The Guardian’s art critic Jonathan Jones remarked that Cattelan’s banana installation pokes fun at the money-centric art scene, highlighting the paradox of how something seemingly mundane can hold such high value in the art market.
Cattelan himself has emphasized that the artwork “was not a joke”, but rather a sincere commentary on societal values and the commercialization of art. He saw it as a way to play by his own rules within the art fair environment, where speed and business often take precedence.
Comedian will be auctioned at Sotheby’s contemporary evening art sale in New York on November 20th.