According to a statement from Sotheby’s, a cryptocurrency entrepreneur paid $6.2 million on Wednesday for a fresh banana taped to a wall, a controversial piece of conceptual art by Italian artist Maurizio Cattelan, at a New York auction.
When the edible creation “Comedian” made its premiere at the 2019 Art Basel show in Miami Beach, it caused controversy and prompted debate about whether it qualified as art, which was Cattelan’s declared goal.
The fruit and its single strip of silver duct tape, which sold for $120,000 five years ago, cost Chinese-born cryptocurrency pioneer Justin Sun more than $6 million on Wednesday.
“This is more than just a piece of art. It is an example of a cultural phenomenon that connects the domains of memes and art.
