Italian sculptor Maurizio Cattelan and his banana are still making news. We have previously reported on the lawsuit by sculptor Joe Morford against Cattelan alleging that Cattelan’s 2019 installation “Comedian” (a banana duct taped to a wall) had copied his 2001 “Banana & Orange.” Morford, acting pro se, lost in the Southern District of Florida and the Eleventh Circuit, both of which declined to find that the works were “strikingly similar.” Undeterred, Morford has filed a petition for certiorari with the Supreme Court. The Supreme Court’s rules allow pro se parties to file petitions, but they may not argue before the Court.

In November 2024 a copy of an edition of three Banana sculptures by Cattelan sold at auction in New York for $6.24 million. Meanwhile, Comedian has been selected to be digitally displayed in UK schools as part of weekly exhibitions by The Art In Schools charity. Why? According to artist Damien Hirst, who selected the work:

“It is everything art gets a bad name for and everything I love about art. It’s perfect and it’s a real banana.”