Maurizio Cattelan's "Comedian," documenting the contemporary art world for $120,000

A banana that Italian artist Maurizio Cattelan taped to the facade of the Perrotin booth at the Art Basel Miami Beach fair in December 2019 became the most discussed artwork of the year , not only because of its extremely simple composition, but also because of its exaggerated price. The piece, titled "The Comedian," quickly became a viral sensation on social media when it was exhibited. The public scrambled to imitate, interpret and ridicule it: substituting other foods for bananas, or sticking bananas in different places at different angles and in different ways. Two days after the work was exhibited, before the bananas rotted, performance artist David Datuna stepped forward from the booth and successfully tore, peeled and ate the bananas in front of the audience. Datuna said it was a performance and named it "The Hungry Artist," and praised the $120,000 banana for its good taste. Needless to say, this work has provoked countless debates. Why would a banana sell for $120,000 and someone would pay for it?

In our era of highly developed digital media technology, artists no longer have a monopoly on image production, and each individual is both a producer and a recipient of images. As never before, the public occupies an important place in the art world, sometimes even directly determining the value of a work. For individuals, the act of visiting an exhibition has a certain sense of ritual. Dress neatly before viewing the exhibition. At the exhibition, we watched, stared and thought in front of the work, trying to understand what this banana sticking to the wall actually means? Bananas became a trend, and taking pictures with them and posting them on social networks also became a symbol of personal artistic taste. The spiritual journey ended when we walked out of the showroom and received likes on social media. We forget the work, the image remains, and as for the artist's intentions, we don't care. An artist becomes a brand, or a movie star, gaining public admiration and following. Once he became famous, he no longer needed to create his own works. He only provides concepts and signatures, and assistants and studios will help him complete follow-up works. This is the art world in which The Comedian and Cattelan live, made up of the capitalist value system, unique to our time. Under this system, a work of art is the only object to be viewed, and the emotions of curiosity, surprise, worry, confusion, etc. that different viewing subjects feel when they stare at it, as well as the sense of certainty and superiority that arises from it, will be very interesting. research object.

everything is planned

While Cattelan often improvises nonsensical pieces, this banana isn't just as handy as Duchamp's urinal. The piece was conceived by Cattelan for about a year. The original bronze and resin bananas never satisfied the artist until one day he realized "The banana is supposed to be a banane". Every detail of the work, from the shape of the fruit, the angle at which it is glued to the wall, to the location where it is displayed (the center of a large blank wall in front of the gallery booth, where a large-scale work could have been hung) has been carefully designed .

Every element that makes up the work is indispensable; the work of a well-known artist represented by a well-known gallery is displayed at Art Basel (one of the most important art fairs in the world), as well as cheap materials and Huge contrast between high prices. The absence of any of the above cannot make the drama run smoothly. Art Basel offers The Comedians the attention of audiences, media and celebrities. The authority of artists, galleries and fairs determines that this banana glued to the wall will not be ignored, and it will not be easily questioned. An obscure, infinitely reproducible, cheap installation won't spark the musings of art lovers, let alone photographed with it. Furthermore, the contrast between absurd prices and cheap materials ensures continued debate and attention on the work. It was the public debate it sparked around art and society that made The Comedian find a buyer willing to pay $120,000 for it.

Without comedians, bananas are just bananas

After the Hungry Artist incident, the gallery quickly "restored" the work with a spare banana. The gallerist Emmanuel Perrotin looked relaxed. He explained: "Without a certificate of authenticity, a work of conceptual art is just its material expression." Datuna's performance reveals the absurdity of the whole work without mercy - what the audience "worships" is a banana that can be peeled off and eaten at any time - like a new version of "The Emperor's New Clothes" ". Art in the early 21st century still retains a certain mystique and authority. There is a certain kind of "artistic worship" in the audience. This phenomenon is exactly what Duchamp and Cattelan try to expose through their work. Datuna's actions, while offensive, fit Cattelan's intent perfectly, and it's hard to believe it wasn't pre-planned.

In fact, "The Comedian" doesn't just refer to the bananas and tape that can be replaced at any time, nor the certificate of authenticity, but all the audience members, journalists, media, collectors, critics, art dealers and exposition. All the participants acted together in this comedy, without them the banana is just a banana; with their participation, the banana becomes a work of art. Cattelan uses a banana to bring the absurdity of the entire contemporary art world to the screen, putting it in front of us, inviting us to participate, experience and comment together, and to document our time together. His play on the art world often arouses the antipathy of conservatives, but it has to be admitted that Cattelan's unique artistic vision and subtle expression are worthy of his fame in the art world. After Duchamp's "Fountain", "Comedian" not only questioned the authority of art and the public's "worship" of art, but also was a true portrayal of the integration of the public, social media and contemporary art in the capitalist consumer society at the beginning of the 21st century , its value in the history of art will be comparable to that of "Fountain". At this point, this banana is really worth $120,000.