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World of the Bizarre

Artist sells absolutely nothing for $18,300

By T.K. Randall
May 30, 2021 · Comment icon 29 comments

Is a piece of art really art if it doesn't actually exist ? Image Credit: CC BY-SA 3.0 Laitr Keiows
An 'invisible sculpture' consisting of absolutely nothing whatsoever has sold for a ridiculous price at auction.
Modern art can sometimes be a contentious subject, with everything from piles of rubbish to mundane objects selling for whopping great sums simply because such pieces have been defined as 'art'.

Sardinia-born artist Salvatore Garau however has now taken things one step further - perhaps as far as it is possible to go - by presenting and selling an 'invisible sculpture' at auction.

Entitled "I Am", the piece, which fills an area of totally empty space measuring 150x150cm, is literally nothing at all, with the only physical component being the owner's certificate of authenticity.

And the price for this piece of absolutely nothing whatsoever ? $18,300.
In a world where a banana taped to a wall can sell for $120,000, it's not entirely surprising.

"The successful outcome of the auction testifies to an irrefutable fact: the void is nothing but a space full of energy, and even if we empty it and nothing remains, according to Heisenberg's uncertainty principle that nothingness has a weight," said Garau.

"It therefore has energy that condenses and transforms itself into particles, in short, in us!"

At least the new owner of the piece won't have to worry about anyone stealing it...

Source: Auto Evolution | Comments (29)




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Recent comments on this story
Comment icon #20 Posted by Twin 3 years ago
A fool and his money are soon parted. Thomas Tusser.
Comment icon #21 Posted by Wistman 3 years ago
      Well it's not exactly a 'new' concept in art, though mebbe so in 'object' art.   The American composer, John Cage, composed his 4'33", in 1952.  From Wikipedia: Believe it or not, there were precursors to this, though it's probably the most famous.  Also: It premiered just down the road from me.  A source of pride in these parts.  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/4′33″
Comment icon #22 Posted by quiXilver 3 years ago
Sounds like a potent statement on the business of art. Art is an interactive process, first the artist with their craft and their process.  Then with whomever interacts with it once it's released. As for the Portuguese play, perhaps it's a translation or a copy of Yasmina Reza’s vastly successful 1994 play 'Art', in which three Frenchmen bicker about whether an all-white canvas is a masterpiece or a joke (hence the quotation marks around the title). play 'Art'.  A powerful conversation about what constitutes art and who is the Arbiter of what is artistic and what is useless.  Buddy of min... [More]
Comment icon #23 Posted by ouija ouija 3 years ago
I don't think the artist is invisible as well as his art work!
Comment icon #24 Posted by Tomas S 3 years ago
Actually all of them are just bad copies from China. I have the original. You clearly see the difference in quality.
Comment icon #25 Posted by Nuclear Wessel 3 years ago
This is why aliens don't talk to us.
Comment icon #26 Posted by Nosy.Matters 3 years ago
Zany, No limits anything goes in art. Check it Number 2 Costs a Lot of Money https://www.oddee.com/art-exhibits-bizarre-fascinating/ "'Waste not, want not. For one night back in 2013, some olfactory free spirits ventured to San Francisco’s Public Works art house to see a series of prints made from excrement in a show called “I Poop You.” We assume people said it stunk, even if it had nothing to do with the scent. "' Art world can be strange indeed. One submitted lower in article IS , BELIEVE IT,  on used rubbers/condoms. Also, purely hearsay, that Google spent a boatload on seaweed toss... [More]
Comment icon #27 Posted by theotherguy 3 years ago
Gahh. I have one simple requirement for "art": If I can replicate it myself in less than four hours and less than $200, it's not art. Scribbling on a urinal isn't art. Taping a banana to a wall isn't art. Dunking a crucifix in a beaker of urine isn't art. This ain't even close to art. This is the art world equivalent of paying several hundred dollars for pre-ripped jeans with fake stains. Except worse, since then you at least get an overpriced pair of work pants out of it. I literally can't understand, at all, the idea of handing over five digits for absolutely nothing and calling it a success... [More]
Comment icon #28 Posted by Sir Wearer of Hats 3 years ago
GOOD ON THE ARTIST.  Stupid people deserve to be separated from their money.
Comment icon #29 Posted by Hawken 3 years ago
I wonder if the buyer eats tide pods also. 


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