An artwork 'ripe for the picking'

The "Comedian", an artwork by Maurizio Cattelan was devoured by a performance artist, David Datuna.

Not only that, Datuna, the self-proclaimed starving artist, flaunted his fondness for the $12,000 worth banana "Comedian."

"I really love this installation. It's very delicious," he wrote on Instagram, alongside a video showing the aftermath of his stunt.

When artist Maurizio Cattelan duct-taped a banana to a wall and priced it at $120,000 this week, it could've been predicted that it was heading towards no good.

The art work was ripe for the picking, and on Saturday, it was discourteously taken off the wall at the Art Basel Miami Beach. Datuna ate it without any regards to the stunned gallery visitors – who took videos of the incident and later posted it on Instagram.

The statement from the hosting art gallery – Galerie Perrotin revealed that there were three editions of the art work "Comedian". The other two editions have already been sold for $12,000.

The exhibited banana was bought from a grocery store in Miami. It was stuck on the wall using a single piece of duct tape. David had no regards for the duct tape either when he took the banana off the wall and peeled both banana skin and duct tape together before he enjoyed eating it.

However, as per the instruction of the artist Cattelan, the banana can be replaced – claimed the art gallery as the artist's instructions were "intentionally imprecise". Unfortunately, amid the confusion, the gallery decided to remove the artwork owing to safety concerns. "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 neighbours", read the Perrotin's statement.

Perrotin also commented that bananas are "a symbol of global trade, a double entendre, as well as a classic device for humour," adding that the artist turns mundane objects into "vehicles of both delight and critique."