Crypto entrepreneur Justin Sun made headlines after he fulfilled a promise he made by eating a $6.2 million artwork featuring a banana duct-taped to a wall. The Chinese-born founder of a crypto company, Sun, enjoyed the banana at one of Hong Kong’s luxurious hotels in front of journalists and influencers. He described the banana as “much better than other bananas” and stated that it was quite good.
The artwork, titled “Comedian,” was created by Italian artist Maurizio Cattelan and was sold at a Sotheby’s auction in New York. Sun was one of seven bidders and expressed disbelief before deciding to eat the banana. He believed that consuming the fruit at a press conference would become a part of the artwork’s history.
Sun also drew parallels between conceptual art like “Comedian” and NFT art and decentralized blockchain technology. He emphasized that most of these objects and ideas exist as intellectual property and on the internet rather than something physical.
In addition to his extravagant banana-eating display, Sun recently became an advisor to World Liberty Financial, a crypto initiative backed by US president-elect Donald Trump, after making a $30 million investment. Despite his involvement with the project, Sun denied that the investment was an attempt to influence Trump or American politics, stating that they are apolitical.
Sun, who is currently facing allegations of fraud and securities law violations in relation to his crypto project Tron, believes that his artwork may experience a speculative craze similar to that of crypto. He compared the potential increase in value of the banana artwork to that of Bitcoin.
The banana artwork comes with a certificate of authenticity from Cattelan and instructions on how to replace the fruit when it decays. Sun mentioned that he had some doubts before bidding for the artwork, such as concerns about the banana’s condition and how to determine its value.
Overall, Sun’s extravagant purchase and subsequent banana-eating stunt have sparked discussions about the nature of conceptual art, the relationship between art and technology, and the speculative nature of investments in both the art world and the crypto industry.
