I viewed Maurizio Cattelan's Comedian (duct tape banana) at Serralves

Last week, I viewed Maurizio Cattelan's Comedian (duct tape banana) at Serralves, Porto, and I'm still pondering the concept behind the concept.

With conceptual art such as Maurizio Cattelan's work, the concept is the art. 
As an artist myself, I understand the numerous 'I don't understand this!' exclamations by viewers. As thinking human beings, we tend to seek understanding, and when something is beyond our logical comprehension, we are left with certain reactions...

Reject it
Ridicule it
Receive it
Resonate with it
Laugh at it
Laugh with it
etc.

I think that happens with abstract art, too. A traditional landscape, you can understand. But, marks, rudimentary squiggles, blocks of colours, a few lines...?...Oh, oh. Here comes the 'my five-year-old can do this!' or 'my bad art can be art!' remarks. 🤪

I love art. I seriously do. The deeper I dive into it, beyond the aesthetics, and go beneath being an artist, the more I feel in tune with myself, and the world around me.

But let's go back to the $120,000 banana [which was eaten].

Here are my two selected articles, which explain Maurizio Cattelan's Comedian and his work well, in my opinion.

The $120,000 Art Basel Banana, Explained
written by Elise Taylor for Vogue.

Maurizio Cattelan: King of Conceptual Comedy
written by Christina Elia, BA Art History for The Collector.

Enjoy the read.

🧡
Melinda
P.S. Then again, art is subjective.

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