Justin Sun, a well-known cryptocurrency entrepreneur and founder of the blockchain platform Tron, has made headlines for eating a banana he bought for $6.2 million.
The banana wasn’t just any fruit, it was part of a famous artwork called
Comedian by Italian artist Maurizio Cattelan.
Sun ate the banana during a press conference in Hong Kong, turning an already unusual purchase into an even more surprising event.
The artwork gained global attention when it first appeared at Art Basel Miami in 2019. It consists of a single banana duct-taped to a wall and has been called a symbol of humor and absurdity in the art world. Sun purchased the artwork at a Sotheby’s auction, and many were curious about what he would do with it.
By eating the banana, Sun said he wanted to highlight that the true value of the artwork lies in the idea it represents, not the banana itself.
“Art is like cryptocurrency – it challenges traditional ideas of value and ownership,” Sun explained during the press conference.
The story of the banana began in a New York fruit stand, where vendor Shah Alam sold it for just 35 cents.
When Alam learned that his banana became part of a $6.2 million artwork, he was shocked and upset. In response, Sun announced a plan to buy 100,000 bananas from Alam’s stand and distribute them for free around the world.
This gesture, Sun said, is a way to acknowledge the fruit seller’s unintended role in art history.
“Eating it at a press conference can also become a part of the artwork’s story,” Sun said.
This isn’t the first time someone has eaten Cattelan’s artwork. In 2019, an artist named David Datuna also ate the banana, calling it “performance art.” However, Sun’s act adds a new layer of meaning by connecting it to cryptocurrency and digital culture.
The banana’s story has sparked debates about the nature of art. Some people argue that eating the banana destroys its value, while others believe it strengthens the idea that the artwork is more about the concept than the object itself.
Critics have questioned whether Sun’s actions were a genuine artistic statement or simply a way to grab attention. Supporters, however, see it as a clever move that ties the temporary nature of art to the unpredictability of cryptocurrencies.
