An Italian artist sold a sculpture, which exists only in the buyer’s imagination, for a whopping $18,000.
In 2019, the world was stunned when the artist Maurizio Cattelan sold a banana duct-taped to a wall for $120,000. Now, a fellow Italian sculptor, Salvatore Garau, has entirely changed the game.
Instead of creating a sculpture made from bronze or marble, Garau designed a masterpiece made from “air and spirit.” And the best part is that he managed to sell it for thousands of dollars!
As UNILAD reveals, the Italian artist’s invisible sculpture is called “Io Sono,” or “I Am.” It was recently sold to a private buyer for €15,000($18,000), along with a certificate of authenticity proving that the vacant space is actually where the sculpture is placed.
The abstract artist insists his masterpiece is as real as any other object we can see and touch.
Garau explained that his non-material sculpture comes in the form of a “vacuum,” HypeBeast reports. The 67-year-old sculptor said:
“The vacuum is nothing more than a space full of energy, and even if we empty it and there is nothing left, according to the Heisenberg uncertainty principle, that ‘nothing’ has a weight. Therefore, it has energy that is condensed and transformed into particles, that is, into us.”
As display guidance for the private buyer, Garau said his sculpture must be kept in a 5×5 foot square in a “private space free from obstructions.” Despite representing the magnificent combination of air and spirit, the piece does not require any specific lighting or climate control.
“Io Sono” is not the first invisible sculpture the Italian artist has created. Previously, he displayed a piece called “Buddha in Contemplation” outside the entrance to the Gallerie d’Italia in Milan.
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According to the artist, his work is intended to reflect how people give meaning to things they cannot see, just like they “shape a God we’ve never seen.”
