Spoiled by Its Own Success, the $ 120,000 Banana Is Gone – The New York Times, The New York Times

Thebanana that consumed the art worldhas taken early retirement.

The artist Maurizio Cattelan- whose fruit pinned to the wall with gray duct tape was sold three times at Art Basel Miami, for $ (***********************************************************, ************************************************************************************************ to $ 150, 06 each time – and his gallery Perrotin announced on Sunday, the last day of the fair, that the banana had been removed from its booth because of the Mona Lisa-like attention it was getting.

“This morning, following recommendations, we removed the installation at 9 am,” the gallery’s statement said, adding: “Art Basel collaboratively worked with us to station guards and create uniform lines. However, the installation caused several uncontrollable crowd movements and the placement of the work on our booth compromised the safety of the artwork around us, including that of our neighbors. ”

The announcement followed anincidentin which a New York City-based performance artist, David Datuna, pulled the banana off the wall and ate it.

Mr. Datuna made light of his action in an Instagram post he titled “Hungry Artist,” writing: “Art performance by me. I love Maurizio Cattelan artwork and I really love this installation. It’s very delicious. ”

Mr. Cattelan, an Italian artist known for his satirical takes, including a functioning gold toilet that did a turn at the Guggenheim and was recently stolenfrom a museum in England, said that he first conceived of the work as a banana-shaped sculpture. But after testing several materials, including resin, bronze and painted bronze, he decided to use a real store-bought banana.

The gallery’s statement announcing the banana’s removal concluded on a wistful note: “’Comedian,’ with its simple composition, ultimately offered a complex reflection of ourselves. We would like to warmly thank all those who participated in this memorable adventure, as well as to our colleagues. We sincerely apologize to all the visitors of the fair who today will not be able to participate in ‘Comedian.’ ”