A gold toilet, that was made by the same controversial artist who duct-taped a banana to a wall, sold for a staggering $12.1 million at a Sothebys auction on Tuesday, Nov. 18. The 223-pound toilet, dubbed America by its provocative maker Maurizio Cattelan, is entirely made up of 18-karat gold and had a starting bid of $10 million. The art, which functions just like a regular toilet and was even installed in Sothebys New York headquarters for public viewing before the auction, is intended to satirize excessive wealth in the US, Cattelan explained. Whatever you eat, a $200 lunch or a $2 hot dog, the results are the same, toilet-wise, he said.
Cattelan added that he wanted to put something priceless in the least noble and most necessary place to demonstrate the connection between high form and base functionality. Sothebys referred to the gold toilet as an incisive commentary on the collision of artistic production and commodity value. Visitors werent permitted to actually use the toilet while it was on display. We dont want people sitting on the art, Sothebys expert David Galperin said. Some of Cattelans previous works include the Comedian, which features a banana duct-taped to a wall. It became a pop culture sensation practically overnight and sold for a whopping $6 million. The artwork had to be replicated multiple times, though, after the banana either grew moldy and expired or was eaten by passersby.The post Fully functional 18-karat gold toilet sells for $12M appeared first on Linda Ikeji Blog.
