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    Mexican art critic’s stunt shatters $20G contemporary piece

    A Mexican art critic’s plan to show her disdain for a contemporary installation by setting a soda can atop the work took an unanticipated turn when the stunt shattered the piece.

    Avelina Lésper apologized for the incident at the Zona Maco art fair in Mexico City on Saturday, saying that she did not intentionally destroy the piece, which consisted of a sheet of glass with a stone, soccer ball and other random objects suspended inside.

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    “It was like the work heard my comment and felt what I thought of it,” Lésper said in a video statement for Milenio, a Mexican media group that publishes her columns. “The work shattered into pieces and collapsed and fell on the floor.”

    The display was created by Mexican artist Gabriel Rico, who contrasts objects made by humans, such as tennis balls, with objects found in nature, such as feathers and rocks.

    After the work lay ruined on the gallery floor, Lésper said she was then told the piece was valued at $20,000.

    The gallery said the destruction appeared to be accidental, but criticized Lésper’s conduct as showing an “enormous lack of professionalism and respect.”

    MEXICO’S PAINTING OF NAKED REVOLUTIONARY WAR HERO WEARING HIGH HEELS SPARKS ANGER, PROTESTS

    “Lésper coming too close to the work to place a soda can on it and take a picture as criticism without a doubt caused the destruction,” OMR gallery said in a statement on Instagram.

    The incident also spurred a debate on social media over what constitutes art.

    Alfonso Miranda, director of the Soumaya art museum in Mexico, described the incident via Twitter as a “tragedy.” Others took to social media to applaud the destruction as a performance piece, and to pan the sale of art that consists of used and found objects.

    Lésper said she offered to repair the piece after the gallery rejected her idea to leave the installation shattered, to show its evolution.

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    The artist has yet to comment on the incident.

    The Associated Press contributed to this report.

    7-year-old painter wows art world in Germany

    A 7-year-old painter has taken the German art world by storm.

    Mikail Akar, who was born in Cologne, is an expressionist art prodigy whose paintings are now selling for thousands of dollars across the world.

    “At just 7 years old, he is established in the art world. There is interest from Germany, France and the USA,” his father and manager, Kerem Akar, told AFP.

    The child’s talent was reportedly discovered when his dad gave him a canvas and some paint for his fourth birthday.

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    7-year-old German artist Mikail Akar poses in front of a limited print edition of his

    7-year-old German artist Mikail Akar poses in front of a limited print edition of his “Champi” painting, prior to the opening of his “Manus 11” exhibition in Berlin on December 13, 2019.
    (JOHN MACDOUGALL/AFP via Getty Images)

    “The first picture looked fantastic, and I thought at first that my wife had painted it,” Kerem Akar said. “I thought maybe it was just coincidence, but by the second and third pictures it was clear he had talent.”

    One of Mikail’s pieces, produced in collaboration with Germany and Bayern Munich football star Manuel Neuer, recently sold for $12,000.

    The child told AFP that he idolizes Jackson Pollock, Michael Jackson and Jean-Michel Basquiat. His work can be seen on his Instagram page, which is also managed by his father.

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    “When I’m older, I want to be a football player,” Mikail said, discussing a recent 8-0 victory with his school team.

    His father also explained that he and his wife don’t push their son, that they turn down many requests and that they try to shield him from the trappings of fame.

    “He only paints when he wants to. Sometimes that is once a week, sometimes once a month,” his father told AFP.

    7-year-old German artist Mikail Akar poses in front of a print edition of his

    7-year-old German artist Mikail Akar poses in front of a print edition of his “Champi” painting (right) and his painting “Sonnenblume Mensch” (Sunflower Man) (left) prior to the opening of his “Manus 11” exhibition in Berlin on December 13, 2019. (Photo by JOHN MACDOUGALL/AFP via Getty Images)

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    Diana Achtzig, director of the Achtzig Gallery for Contemporary Art in Berlin, told the AFP that she was impressed by Mikail’s “imagination and variation.”

    “As long as he has someone supporting him and not exploiting him, then he has a great future ahead of him,” she said.

    Banana duct-taped to Miami art gallery wall taken down after crowds become ‘uncontrollable’

    The banana has split.

    The banana duct-taped to a wall, which sold for $120,000 at Miami Art Basel, was no longer on display Sunday, thanks to “several uncontrollable crowd movements.”

    The controversial piece, titled “Comedian,” was taken down Sunday at the request of Art Basel’s organizers, The New York Post reported.

    “Maurizio Cattelan’s Comedian, 2019 is no longer on view,” an Art Basel spokesperson told The Post. “The crowds surrounding the installation posed a serious health and safety risk, as well as an access issue, so the work was removed.’”

    Around 1:45 p.m. on Saturday in front of a convention center full of art lovers, New York-based performance artist David Datuna ate some of the banana, gallery representatives told the Miami Herald.

    PELOSI SUGGESTS AMID TRUMP IMPEACHMENT, ‘THE ARTS’ WILL HELP HEAL AMERICA

    He called his performance piece “Hungry Artist.”

    “He did not destroy the artwork. The banana is the idea,” Lucien Terras, director of museum relations, said.

    Collectors have been buying the certificate of the art — the banana is not made to last.

    The banana had been mounted on Emmanuel Perrotin’s outer gallery wall at Art Basel in Miami Beach.

    “Art Basel collaboratively worked with us to station guards and create uniform lines,” the Paris-based gallery’s statement said.

    “However, the installation caused several uncontrollable crowd movements and the placement of the work on our booth compromised the safety of the artwork around us, including that of our neighbors. In the end, I would like to warmly thank all those who participated in this memorable adventure.”

    Art Basel Miami has been a yearly December event during which celebrities and artists have descended for a star-studded week of festivities in Florida, including glamorous parties and art shows.

    Two pieces of the work quickly sold for $120,000. The Perrotin gallery raised the price to $150,000 for the third piece, which is to be sold to a museum.

    The price tag of Cattelan’s work has spurred viral online criticism of wealth inequality and materialism.

    Italian artist Maurizio Cattelan created the banana duct-taped to a wall art piece that sold for $120,000. (Reuters, File)

    Italian artist Maurizio Cattelan created the banana duct-taped to a wall art piece that sold for $120,000. (Reuters, File)

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    The Italian creator of the artwork also was behind the gold toilet offered to the White House on loan by New York City‘s prestigious Guggenheim Museum. The museum rejected a request to display Van Gogh’s 1888 “Landscape With Snow” work in the residence and proposed the toilet instead.

    In an August 2017 blog post, Guggenheim curator Nancy Spector said, “Trump is synonymous with golden toilets.”

    Banana duct-taped to wall sells for $120G at Miami art event

    This work of art seems to have a lot of a peel.

    An odd piece of artwork that consists of a banana duct-taped to a wall has sold for $120,000 at a Miami art fair.

    The piece, titled “The Comedian,” was created by Italian artist  Maurizio Cattelan, who is behind an 18-carat gold toilet offered to President Trump earlier this year.

    Two of the three editions of the banana artwork sold for $120,000 at the Art Basel Miami festival and a third is expected to fetch $150,000, Miami’s WFOR-TV reported.

    PELOSI SUGGESTS AMID TRUMP IMPEACHMENT, ‘THE ARTS’ WILL HELP HEAL AMERICA

    The event is a star-studded affair that occurs every December and includes parties and shows. The price tag of “The Comedian” has spurred criticism of wealth inequality and materialism.

    Kristen Orthman, director of Sen. Elizabeth Warren‘s 2020 Democratic presidential campaign, tweeted about the peice: “‘Banana with duct tape’ also know as ‘we need a wealth tax.'”

    Several other users voiced support for a wealth tax in light of the sale.

    Cattelan said he’d been working on the “The Comedian” for a year and initially wanted to create a bronze banana.

    Italian artist Maurizio Cattelan created the banana duct-taped to a wall art piece that sold for $120,000. (Reuters)

    Italian artist Maurizio Cattelan created the banana duct-taped to a wall art piece that sold for $120,000. (Reuters)

    “Wherever I was traveling I had this banana on the wall. I couldn’t figure out how to finish it,” he told Art Net News. “In the end, one day I woke up and I said, ‘The banana is supposed to be a banana.’”

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    The artist is also behind the gold toilet offered to the White House on loan by New York City‘s prestigious Guggenheim Museum. The museum rejected a request to display Van Gogh’s 1888 “Landscape With Snow” work in the residence and proposed the toilet instead.

    In an August 2017 blog post, Guggenheim curator Nancy Spector said “Trump is synonymous with golden toilets.”

    Fox News’ Frank Miles contributed to this report. 

    Banana duct-taped to wall sells for $120G at Miami art event

    This work of art seems to have a lot of a peel.

    An odd piece of artwork that consists of a banana duct-taped to a wall has sold for $120,000 at a Miami art fair.

    The piece, titled “The Comedian,” was created by Italian artist  Maurizio Cattelan, who is behind an 18-carat gold toilet offered to President Trump earlier this year.

    Two of the three editions of the banana artwork sold for $120,000 at the Art Basel Miami festival and a third is expected to fetch $150,000, Miami’s WFOR-TV reported.

    PELOSI SUGGESTS AMID TRUMP IMPEACHMENT, ‘THE ARTS’ WILL HELP HEAL AMERICA

    The event is a star-studded affair that occurs every December and includes parties and shows. The price tag of “The Comedian” has spurred criticism of wealth inequality and materialism.

    Kristen Orthman, director of Sen. Elizabeth Warren‘s 2020 Democratic presidential campaign, tweeted about the peice: “‘Banana with duct tape’ also know as ‘we need a wealth tax.'”

    Several other users voiced support for a wealth tax in light of the sale.

    Cattelan said he’d been working on the “The Comedian” for a year and initially wanted to create a bronze banana.

    Italian artist Maurizio Cattelan created the banana duct-taped to a wall art piece that sold for $120,000. (Reuters)

    Italian artist Maurizio Cattelan created the banana duct-taped to a wall art piece that sold for $120,000. (Reuters)

    “Wherever I was traveling I had this banana on the wall. I couldn’t figure out how to finish it,” he told Art Net News. “In the end, one day I woke up and I said, ‘The banana is supposed to be a banana.’”

    CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

    The artist is also behind the gold toilet offered to the White House on loan by New York City‘s prestigious Guggenheim Museum. The museum rejected a request to display Van Gogh’s 1888 “Landscape With Snow” work in the residence and proposed the toilet instead.

    In an August 2017 blog post, Guggenheim curator Nancy Spector said “Trump is synonymous with golden toilets.”

    Fox News’ Frank Miles contributed to this report. 

    Million-dollar ‘traffic jam’ created from sand on Miami Beach

    It took artist Leandro Erlich two years and 330 tons of sand to create his largest work of art to date — a giant traffic jam, made entirely of sand.

    (AP)

    Erlich was commissioned by the city of Miami Beach to create the work, which was unveiled during Art Basel. The surreal traffic jam depicts 66 life-sized sculptures of cars and trucks stuck in an imaginary traffic jam on the oceanfront of popular Lincoln Road.

    Artist Leandro Erlich spent two years on the project.

    Artist Leandro Erlich spent two years on the project.
    (AP)

    The installation is meant to suggest a future relic, like a contemporary Pompeii, and alludes to Florida’s fragile position in the large universal canvas, touching on climate crisis and rising sea levels.

    (AP)

    The installation cost over a million dollars, but the city paid $300,000 thanks to sponsors and donations. It will remain on display until Dec. 15.

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    Million-dollar ‘traffic jam’ created from sand on Miami Beach

    It took artist Leandro Erlich two years and 330 tons of sand to create his largest work of art to date — a giant traffic jam, made entirely of sand.

    (AP)

    Erlich was commissioned by the city of Miami Beach to create the work, which was unveiled during Art Basel. The surreal traffic jam depicts 66 life-sized sculptures of cars and trucks stuck in an imaginary traffic jam on the oceanfront of popular Lincoln Road.

    Artist Leandro Erlich spent two years on the project.

    Artist Leandro Erlich spent two years on the project.
    (AP)

    The installation is meant to suggest a future relic, like a contemporary Pompeii, and alludes to Florida’s fragile position in the large universal canvas, touching on climate crisis and rising sea levels.

    (AP)

    The installation cost over a million dollars, but the city paid $300,000 thanks to sponsors and donations. It will remain on display until Dec. 15.

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    Pelosi suggests amid Trump impeachment, ‘the arts’ will help heal America

    House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., suggested Thursday night that “the arts” will help unite the country as House Democrats pursue impeachment against President Trump.

    During a televised town hall, Pelosi was asked how she planned on “unifying the nation” throughout the impeachment process and she began by stressing that the country “was divided” and how Trump had been “divisive” before House Democrats launched their inquiry last fall. She later added that despite existing divisions before he took office, Trump made them “much, much worse.”

    After touting the 275 “bipartisan bills” she said the House passed that were “waiting” on the desk of Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., Pelosi stressed that the country not only had to “heal” but also to “repair” itself.

    “I myself think that one of the ways that America will heal is through the arts,” Pelosi told the CNN town hall attendee. “I truly believe that’s something where we find our common ground. You enjoy music together, you see a play or movie, you laugh, you cry, you’re inspired, you laugh, you cry…”

    WASHINGTON POST BLASTED OVER COLUMN URGING JOURNALISTS TO ‘REACH THE UNDECIDED’ ON IMPEACHMENT

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    She went on to paraphrase poet Percy Bysshe Shelley by saying, “the greatest force for moral good is imagination.”

    “Imagination, the creativity of it all, again, to share an experience in a way that puts aside your differences. Imagination, put yourself in another person’s shoes,” Pelosi continued. “I think that that plus a discussion, people talking to each other — we all have much more in common than divides us and we have to find that common ground.”

    Pelosi suggests amid Trump impeachment, ‘the arts’ will help heal America

    House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., suggested Thursday night that “the arts” will help unite the country as House Democrats pursue impeachment against President Trump.

    During a televised town hall, Pelosi was asked how she planned on “unifying the nation” throughout the impeachment process and she began by stressing that the country “was divided” and how Trump had been “divisive” before House Democrats launched their inquiry last fall. She later added that despite existing divisions before he took office, Trump made them “much, much worse.”

    After touting the 275 “bipartisan bills” she said the House passed that were “waiting” on the desk of Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., Pelosi stressed that the country not only had to “heal” but also to “repair” itself.

    “I myself think that one of the ways that America will heal is through the arts,” Pelosi told the CNN town hall attendee. “I truly believe that’s something where we find our common ground. You enjoy music together, you see a play or movie, you laugh, you cry, you’re inspired, you laugh, you cry…”

    WASHINGTON POST BLASTED OVER COLUMN URGING JOURNALISTS TO ‘REACH THE UNDECIDED’ ON IMPEACHMENT

    CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

    She went on to paraphrase poet Percy Bysshe Shelley by saying, “the greatest force for moral good is imagination.”

    “Imagination, the creativity of it all, again, to share an experience in a way that puts aside your differences. Imagination, put yourself in another person’s shoes,” Pelosi continued. “I think that that plus a discussion, people talking to each other — we all have much more in common than divides us and we have to find that common ground.”

    Pelosi suggests amid Trump impeachment, ‘the arts’ will help heal America

    House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., suggested Thursday night that “the arts” will help unite the country as House Democrats pursue impeachment against President Trump.

    During a televised town hall, Pelosi was asked how she planned on “unifying the nation” throughout the impeachment process and she began by stressing that the country “was divided” and how Trump had been “divisive” before House Democrats launched their inquiry last fall. She later added that despite existing divisions before he took office, Trump made them “much, much worse.”

    After touting the 275 “bipartisan bills” she said the House passed that were “waiting” on the desk of Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., Pelosi stressed that the country not only had to “heal” but also to “repair” itself.

    “I myself think that one of the ways that America will heal is through the arts,” Pelosi told the CNN town hall attendee. “I truly believe that’s something where we find our common ground. You enjoy music together, you see a play or movie, you laugh, you cry, you’re inspired, you laugh, you cry…”

    WASHINGTON POST BLASTED OVER COLUMN URGING JOURNALISTS TO ‘REACH THE UNDECIDED’ ON IMPEACHMENT

    CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

    She went on to paraphrase poet Percy Bysshe Shelley by saying, “the greatest force for moral good is imagination.”

    “Imagination, the creativity of it all, again, to share an experience in a way that puts aside your differences. Imagination, put yourself in another person’s shoes,” Pelosi continued. “I think that that plus a discussion, people talking to each other — we all have much more in common than divides us and we have to find that common ground.”