A "hungry" artist caused a stir at an art show after he ate a piece by Italian artist Maurizio Cattelan in front of an astonished crowd. The gallery, however, has said the artwork was not destroyed.
Image: Reuters/E. Uzcategui
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A performance artist at the Art Basel show in Florida's Miami Beach shocked a crowd of onlookers when he ate one of the most appealing pieces at the show on Saturday.
But he didn't require medical attention afterwards, as the artwork was an ordinary banana that had been duct-taped to the wall. "Comedian," a piece by Italian artist Maurizio Cattelan, had already been sold to a French collector for $120,000 (€105,000).
The artist, David Datuna, posted a video of the stunt on Instagram titled "Hungry Artist," which showed him shoving the banana in his mouth in front of a group of shocked and giggling art patrons.
"Art performance ... hungry artist," he said, as he peeled the banana and took a bite. "Do you have more? $150,000? Tasting good," he continued.
He was then taken aside for questioning by an unamused representative of the Paris-based Galerie Perrotin, which represents Cattelan.
Two other bananas have been sold for $120,000 and $150,000 eachImage: Reuters/E. Uzcategui
The art is the 'idea'
According to Cattelan's representatives at the Galerie Perrotin, the work was not destroyed.
"He did not destroy the art work. The banana is the idea," Lucien Terras, director of museum relations for Perrotin, told the Miami Herald.
According to Terras, the buyers purchased a certificate of authenticity, which gives them ownership over the idea. The bananas are replaced after they rot.
About 15 minutes after Datuna's stunt, another banana was taped to the wall. Perrotin said it would not press charges.
On Friday, Perrotin sold two editions of "Comedian" for $120,000 each. A third banana was sold to a museum for $150,000.
Cattelan is well-known for offering to loan a fully functioning 18-carat gold toilet called "America" to US President Donald Trump.
The best early works of Germany's art rebels
Starting from their earliest works, it was clear that painters Georg Baselitz, Sigmar Polke, Gerhard Richter and Anselm Kiefer were blazing new trails. A new exhibition in Stuttgart highlights some standout early pieces.
Image: VG Bild-Kunst, Bonn 2019
Georg Baselitz: 'A Green Disruption'
In 1966 Baselitz began to create his so-called fracture paintings, whose motifs seem to have been rearranged from various parts of a tattered photograph. The artist wanted to give the viewer the feeling of injustice and vulnerability, as in this painting from 1967.
Image: Georg Baselitz 2019
Sigmar Polke: 'Circus'
This work by Sigmar Polke from 1966 is one of the rare early matrix images by the artist. The stylistic device, similar to methods used in print pixels, also influenced works of American artists Andy Warhol and Roy Lichtenstein. It became characteristic of Polke's later works.
Image: VG Bild-Kunst, Bonn 2019
Anselm Kiefer: 'Belief, Hope, Love'
This work comes from the series of so-called loft paintings, which have biblical and mythological motifs. Painted in 1973, "Faith, Hope, Love" features brown tones that are typical of this group of works. The title is inscribed in the middle of the picture, a characteristic of many of Kiefer's pieces.
Image: Anselm Kiefer
Gerhard Richter: 'Cow II'
Richter left East Germany in 1961, shortly before the Berlin wall was built. The painting "Cow II" from 1965 was painted when he was living in West Germany. It is part of a series of images that have been central parts of Richter's oeuvre since 1962.
Image: Gerhardt Richter 2018
Georg Baselitz: 'The Forest on its Head'
As a reaction to the conflicting artistic dogmas in East and West over formal illustration and abstraction, Baselitz decided to turn his images upside down. It was an ingenious trick and helped him develop a unique theme, which he continued to explore in his later work. "The Forest on its Head" was painted in 1969.
Image: Georg Baselitz 2019
Sigmar Polke: 'Girlfriends'
In 1965-66, Polke chose a small newspaper photograph clipping for "Girlfriends" — a raster image, or image made of matrix dots. Polke created his own style through shifting half-tone dots. In doing so, he transforms advertising into an artistic message and thus changes the perception of the two bathing ladies.
Image: VG Bild-Kunst, Bonn 2019
Anselm Kiefer: 'Heroic Symbols VII'
At age 20 Anselm Kiefer photographed himself making the Hitler salute for the first time in order to paint the scene later. As a young art student, he noticed how a fascination with totalitarianism and with the figures of Mao and Lenin surrounded him at university, and he responded to it in his art. Kiefer explained that he wanted to experience the forbidden gesture physically.
Image: Anselm Kiefer
Gerhard Richter: 'Swimmers'
In addition to politically charged images, such as those relating to the rearmament of Germany, Gerhard Richter often focused on everyday scenes in his early work in the 60s. This motif came from a black and white photography. Richter projected a slide of the image into canvas, painted it and glazed it in pink.
