5/1/2023 – Seoul, KR

A hungry art student in Seoul caused a stir when he ate a banana from the exhibit “Comedian” by Italian artist Maurizio Cattelan. The artwork, which consists of a fresh banana duct taped to a wall, had sold for $120,000 at Art Basel Miami in 2019. The student, who identified himself as Noh Seung-hyun, said he was feeling peckish and thought the banana looked ripe and delicious. He plucked it off the wall, ate half of it, and then put the remainder back onto the exhibit. He said he did not realize it was an artwork and thought it was a free buffet.

The artist, who is known for his tongue-in-cheek art, such as a fully functional golden toilet, said he was not angry at the student. “I think he did me a favor. He made the artwork more interesting and more relevant to the current situation of global hunger and food waste,” Cattelan said. “Besides, it’s not like he ate the certificate of authenticity. That’s the real artwork.”

Art students and art lovers from around the world debated the merits of the art itself and bananas in general:

“He should have eaten the duct tape too. It’s part of the art.” noted @HungryAllTheTime

“Why didn’t he leave a note saying ‘I’m sorry, I ate your art.’?” @120KAndNotSorry

“He was making a mockery of the art world. He showed how ridiculous it is to pay so much money for a piece of fruit.” @Art4Ever

“Way to contribute to the banana shortage. Watch out natural fungus and disease! Here comes Noh Seung-hyun.” @TR4Awareness

The museum, however, was less amused by the incident. A spokesperson said they had to replace the banana with a new one and increase security around the exhibit. “We respect the artist’s vision and intention, but we also have to protect the artwork from vandalism and theft,” the spokesperson said. “We hope this will not happen again and we urge visitors to refrain from eating or touching any artworks in the museum.”

BY BS

The Journalist BS