Published on: 11/29/2024 – 09:24Amended: 11/29/2024 – 09:22

2 minutes

At one of Hong Kong’s most expensive hotels, Sun ate a banana in front of dozens of journalists and influencers after giving a speech hailing the work as “iconic” and drawing parallels between conceptual art and cryptocurrency.

“It’s much better than other bananas,” Sun said after tasting it for the first time.

“It’s really very good.”

Titled “Comedian,” the conceptual work created by Italian artist Maurizio Cattelan was auctioned at Sotheby’s in New York last week, with Sun among seven bidders.

Sun said he felt “disbelief” in the first 10 seconds after winning the bid, before realizing “this could turn into something big”.

Within 10 seconds he decided to eat the banana.

“Eating it at a press conference can also be part of the history of the work of art,” he said Friday.

The edible creation’s debut at the 2019 Art Basel show in Miami Beach sparked controversy and raised questions about whether it should be considered art — Cattelan’s stated goal.

And Sun on Friday compared conceptual art like “Comedian” to NFT art and decentralized blockchain technology.

“Most of his objects and ideas exist in the form of (intellectual property) and on the Internet, as opposed to something physical,” he said.

Sun this week also disclosed a $30 million investment in World Liberty Financial, a crypto project backed by US President-elect Donald Trump.

The crypto businessman was charged last year by the United States Securities and Exchange Commission with offering and selling unregistered securities in connection with his Tron crypto project. The case is ongoing.

In a reception room at the Peninsula Hotel in Hong Kong, two men dressed as auction house employees stood in front of a featureless wall, the yellow banana providing the only splash of color.

Sun said he only recently decided to bid for the artwork, adding that he had “stupid questions” like whether the banana was rotten and how to value the artwork.

The owner of the artwork receives a certificate of authenticity stating that the work was created by Cattelan along with instructions on how to replace the fruit when it deteriorates.

On Friday, event attendees each received a roll of duct tape and a banana as a souvenir.

“Everyone has a banana to eat,” he said.

© 2024 AFP