How a viral, duct-taped banana came to be worth $1 million

A banana might be just another item on your grocery list, but in the contemporary art world, it carries a price tag of up to $1.5 million. Maurizio Cattelan’s conceptual artwork, titled Comedian, is set to go under the hammer at Sotheby’s in New York on November 20, with an estimated value between $1 million and $1.5 million.

First introduced in 2019 at the Art Basel Miami Beach fair, Comedian quickly became a cultural sensation. The piece featured a fresh banana taped to a wall with silver duct tape. Its absurdity, coupled with its hefty price, sparked debates on art, value, and consumerism. Three editions of the artwork sold for $120,000 to $150,000 each at the fair, despite one banana being eaten by another artist during the event.

More Than a Fruit

The upcoming auction does not include the original bananas, which have long since perished. Buyers will instead receive a certificate of authenticity, granting them the right to recreate Comedian using their own banana and tape. David Galperin, Sotheby’s head of contemporary art, emphasized the work’s provocative nature.

“What Cattelan is really doing is turning a mirror to the contemporary art world and asking questions about how we ascribe value to artworks,” Galperin told AP.

While some dismiss Comedian as a joke, others argue for its deeper meaning. Chloé Cooper Jones, a Columbia University professor, noted its layered commentary. The banana, she told AP, symbolizes global trade and exploitation, pointing to the dark history of labor and imperialism linked to the fruit.

“It would be hard to come up with a better, simple symbol of global trade and all of its exploitations than the banana,” Cooper Jones remarked.

Art That Challenges
Cattelan is often referred to as a “trickster artist,” blending humor with critical reflection on society’s flaws. Cooper Jones suggested that Comedian might challenge audiences to consider their complicity in capitalist systems, adding depth to what initially seems like a playful work.

The auction coincides with the sale of Claude Monet’s Nymphéas from his Water Lilies series, valued at $60 million. Galperin drew parallels between the works, noting that even impressionism faced skepticism in its early days.

“No important, profound, meaningful artwork of the past 100 years or 200 years... did not provoke some kind of discomfort when it was first unveiled,” he said.