Five-year-old me could have been a billionaire by now if I had gotten into the lucrative, controversial world of modern art. The famous duct-taped banana art piece by Maurizio Cattelan titled “Comedian” was sold for $6.2 million dollars to Justin Sun at Sotheby’s in 2024, according to Voices of America.
To many, this seemed ridiculous — after all, anyone could easily buy a roll of duct tape and a banana to create this so-called art piece for less than $20, leading to the controversies of modern art, and this specific piece of art is a form of money laundering.
The first time “Comedian” was sold was in 2019 for $120,000, which already led to an uproar about the credentials for art to be considered art.
When Justin Sun, a crypto investor, recently purchased the piece, CNN reported that he said, “This is not just an artwork. It represents a cultural phenomenon that bridges the worlds of art, memes, and the cryptocurrency community. I believe this piece will inspire more thought and discussion in the future and will become a part of history.”
Well, Sun was correct when he said the piece would spark discussion, as it reawakened the debate over real art.
From Duchamp’s “Fountain,” which is quite literally a urinal, to Andres Serrano’s “Piss Christ” which is a small plastic crucifix submerged in Serrano’s urine, it is understandable why many are confused by modern art.
A YouGov survey found that 92% of Americans consider classical art, specifically that of the Renaissance era, to be “real art,” while only 46% of Americans consider modern art, specifically “Coffee Thyme” by Sam Gilliam to be “real art.”
This all boils down to one thing — what do people consider art? Britannica defines art as “a visual object or experience consciously created through an expression of skill or imagination”. However, this is not the definition most go by.
Sharon Lee, an artist and junior at Pine Creek High School shared her thoughts on defining art.
“I think the definition of art is different for different individuals depending on their personal background and beliefs,” Lee said. “I think that art is something that should convey a message. This message should be understandable for the majority of the population.”
This leads to one of the greatest issues with modern art — its confusing aspect. Rhys Clarke at The Boar writes, “For the modern artist, the more confused they leave their viewers or their audience, the more profound their work of Art must be.”
Clarke elaborates that while confusion starts discussions, it does not necessarily equate to depth. Confusion has become so correlated with modern art that many people have begun labeling any confusing art “modern” despite the period it was created.
“I think the problem with modern art is not many people actually get it,” Lee said. “It creates conversations about the wrong things. It creates debates about the legitimacy of the art, but not about the message of the piece itself.”
Like many, Lee believes that confusion leads to modern art pieces becoming famous and expensive, but it does not necessarily make the art piece a good one.
On the other hand, there are also those who defend modern art wholeheartedly.
“I do get the other side, though. The purpose of art is to really show how the art perceives the world around them, and I don’t think anyone can really say that someone’s perception of the world is wrong. None of us have that authority,” Lee said.
The world is constantly changing, and this change naturally shifts art forms, as art reflects society. For example, at one time Renaissance art was considered modern art. At another time, cave paintings could have been the modern art of the era. If there is no change, there is no growth.
A 2023 story in The Circle Voice, a student newspaper of Groton School in Massachusetts, argues modern art has a deeper meaning than “just paint on a canvas.”
“It allows the artist to convey ideas in a distinctive way, which, therefore, makes it art,” the Circle Voice story reads.
This is a reminder of something that we should have learned in elementary school- just because someone thinks differently from you doesn’t mean it’s wrong. Simply because an art piece does not align with a certain individual’s art style does not discredit it or take away its title of “art”.
Ultimately, the questions of “what is real art” and “what is good art” are complex ones with no definitive answer. We naturally all have our biases and perspectives on this topic.
“I think that at the end of the day, the validity of the art piece depends on the artist’s intentions,” Lee said.
We have no way of peering into minds and seeing if the intention was to simply make money and earn fame or to further art’s growth and spark intellectual conversation, no way of knowing whether that banana duct-taped to the wall was truly a ploy for stardom, a critique on criticism, or simply a piece to make us laugh. That mystery will forever remain within the artist’s mind.
