France museum-goer eats million-dollar banana taped to wall
A visitor to a French museum bit into a fresh banana worth millions of dollars taped to a wall last week, exhibitors said on Friday, in the latest such consumption of the conceptual artwork.
Italian artist Maurizio Cattelan -- whose provocative creation entitled "Comedian" was bought for $6.2 million in New York last year -- said he was disappointed the person did not also eat the skin and the tape.
After the hungry visitor struck on Saturday last week, "security staff rapidly and calmly intervened," the Pompidou-Metz museum in eastern France said.
The work was "reinstalled within minutes", it added.
"As the fruit is perishable, it is regularly replaced according to instructions from the artist."
Cattelan noted the banana-eater had "confused the fruit for the work of art".
"Instead of eating the banana with its skin and duct tape, the visitor just consumed the fruit," he said.
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