Maurizio Cattelan’s controversial duct-taped banana is predicted to achieve more than $1 million (£771,000) at Sotheby’s New York next month. Titled Comedian, the piece split opinions around the world when it appeared at Art Basel Miami Beach in 2019.

It was Cattelan’s first sculpture in 15 years, comprising one lonely banana that had been attached to a wall with a piece if duct-tape. The Italian prankster artist made three editions of Comedian, each supplied with a certificate of authenticity and instructions for how to display the sculpture. Cattelan, who is known for his humorous and provocative hyperrealism, described the piece as “a sincere commentary and a reflection on what we value”.

Throngs of hungry Art Basel-goers gathered around the sculpture to witness performance artist David Datuna take a bite out of it in 2019. After quickly going viral, two versions of the banana were sold for $120,000 (£92,000) and the third for $150,000(£115,000) by Perrotin gallery.

While some found the banana artwork appealingly, including the artist Damien Hirst, a litany of critics denounced Comedian as a symbol of the contemporary art’s absurdism. Five years later, Sotheby’s has placed a staggering $1 million (£771,000) to $1.5 million (£1.1 million) estimate on the infamous piece.

“If at its core, Comedian questions the very notion of the value of art,” said David Galperin, Sotheby’s head of contemporary art in the Americas, “…putting the work at auction this November will be the ultimate realisation of its essential conceptual idea—the public will finally have a say in deciding its true value.”

Born in Padua in 1960, Cattelan made a name for himself in the art world as a “court jester”. His subversive displays often mock both societal norms and popular figures. Despite receiving no formal training, his work has appeared in the Museum of Modern Art in New York, Musée du Louvre in Paris, and the Fondation Beyeler in Basel to name a few.

Comedian will make its auction debut at Sotheby’s “The Now and Contemporary Evening Auction” on 20th November 2024. Those eager to catch a glimpse of the fruit frenzy will have a chance at the pre-sale viewings in New York, London, Paris, Milan, Hong Kong, Dubai, Taipei, Tokyo and Los Angeles.