I really don't understand how Michael Green's didn't sell. If Jeff Koonz was somehow able to make a physical gif, as in a self inflating metal dog that looks rubber, then his would be way cooler. But for this dog statue to just stand there, being orange and still sell 58.4 million is insane.
Now this is not to say that the digital gif version deserves this 58 million instead. It wouldn't make sense for a digital item to sell more than the physical, but I will say if they were to somehow get a physical version of this process of deflating even if it was similar to the gif and just multiple statues showing the deflation process. Now returning back to the gif itself I do enjoy the commentary it's providing on art inflation/deflation and his commitment to the meta by raising the price when it didn't sell. I feel like that encapuslates a fun part about art. It doens't have to be unique or 100% orginal if you're just confident. If you're able to look in the eyes of anyone that questions your motives and say "You just wouldn't get it" truly is a power play. It forces people into some kind of heard mentality of what we're supposed to appreciate as art. I'm not sure how I feel about that on a ethical sense but from a buisness one I can't help but to respect it.
Take for instace the banna duct tapped to the wall titled, "The Comedian" one of the 3 pieces sold for 120k. Just for it to be eaten by another performance artist that didn't spend a penny on it, just walked up and took it off the wall. I feel like that encompasses it perfectly.
All of this excitment and confusion
about how something could be so much, it's the artist's confidence that you're paying respect to. And for another artist to come through and eat it shows, in my opinion, he's more confident. People kept asking why they're supposed to care about this expensive bananna or balloon statue/gif and the answer is you don't. If you didn't make it or you're not paying it doesn't really matter what you think individualy.
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