You know those signs at museums or art galleries that ask you not to touch anything? We've all been in a position where the 'Do Not Touch' sign feels like an enticing invitation but, it's something you never really act on. However, The $120,000 banana that was duct-taped to the wall of an art gallery was not only taken off... it was eaten!
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News Week[/caption]
It may not sound like more than a banana taped to a wall but, it was recognized as “a symbol of global trade”. The piece is called Comedian by an Italian artist named Maurizio Cattelan. It was a popular tourist attraction at the international gallery Perrotin at Art Basel in Miami. It was worth $120,000 until New York Performance artist David Datuna ate it, saying he was hungry.
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NYtimes[/caption]
Many were extremely unimpressed by Davids's disrespect. Emmanuel Perrotin, the founder of the gallery, commented on the event: “Maurizio’s work is not just about objects, but about how objects move through the world.”
Well, luckily all hope is not lost just yet. The piece apparently comes with a certificate of authenticity, and whoever owns it can replace the banana. “[Datuna] did not destroy the artwork. The banana is the idea,” Lucien Terras, a director at the gallery, told the Miami Herald.
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David, on the other hand, was escorted out by security but is far from apologetic. "It wasn't vandalism, it was art performance from me and absolutely I am not sorry," Datuna said during a press conference on Monday.
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Herald Publicist[/caption]