Fruit seller who sold £5,000,000 banana won’t get a penny

The effect vendor down the banana duct-taped to a partition – which sold for £5,000,000 astatine an auction in New York past week – had nary thought astir the fruit’s fate.

74-year-old Shah Alam runs a effect basal extracurricular of Sotheby’s successful Manhattan, wherever helium sold the banana which ended up successful the creation piece.

His bananas merchantability for £0.20 each, oregon £0.79 for a bunch.

The New York Times tracked down Mr Alam and told him astir wherever the banana helium sold ended up.

The portion of conceptual creation is called ‘Comedian’ and was made by Italian artist Maurizio Cattelan.

The banana Mr Alam sold was portion of the piece, sold by an unnamed collector, for £5,000,000.

Mr Alam is simply a widower from Bangladesh, and moved to the US successful 2007 to unrecorded adjacent his daughters. He works 4 days a week successful 12 hr shifts.

When helium heard what the creation portion with his banana sold for, helium began to cry: ‘I americium a mediocre man. I person ne'er had this benignant of money; I person ne'er seen this benignant of money.’

A spokesperson for Sothebys confirmed the banana was sold for the artwork.

Mr Cattelan heard astir Mr Alam’s ordeal and told the NYT: ‘The absorption of the banana vendor moves maine deeply, underscoring however creation tin resonate successful unexpected and profound ways.

‘However, art, by its nature, does not lick problems — if it did, it would beryllium politics.’

The creation was this week bought by Justin Sun, the laminitis of a cryptocurrency platform.

However, Mr Sun didn’t bargain the existent Comedian, helium conscionable bought a certificate giving him the close to duct-tape a banana to the wall and telephone it Comedian.

The purchaser said the portion ‘represents a taste improvement that bridges the worlds of art, memes, and the cryptocurrency community.

Mr Sun added: ‘Additionally, successful the coming days, I volition personally devour the banana arsenic portion of this unsocial creator experience, honouring its spot successful some creation past and fashionable culture.’

Comedian archetypal debuted successful 2019 astatine Art Basel Miami Beach, with festivalgoers trying to enactment retired whether it was expected to beryllium a gag oregon not.

At 1 point, different creator took the banana disconnected the partition and ate it.

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