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An Artist Took $84,000 in Cash From a Museum and Handed in Blank Canvases Titled "Take the Money and Run." He's Been Ordered to Return Some of it
CBS NEWS ^ | SEPTEMBER 20, 2023 | CAITLIN O'KANE

Posted on 09/20/2023 11:15:50 AM PDT by nickcarraway

Andersson said at the time that while it wasn't what they had agreed on in the contract, the museum got new and interesting art. "When it comes to the amount of $84,000, he hasn't broke any contract yet as the initial contract says we will have the money back on January 16th 2022."

But Haaning refused to turn in the money, according to BBC News. And after a long legal battle, the artist was ordered to refund the court 492,549 Danish kroner – or $70,623 U.S. dollars.

The sum is reduced to include Haaning's artist fee and the cost of mounting the art, according to BBC News.

When Haaning first pulled the stunt, Andersson said he laughed. "Jens is known for his conceptual and activistic art with a humoristic touch. And he gave us that – but also a bit of a wake up call as everyone now wonders where did the money go," he told CBS News in 2021.

According to a news release from Haaning at the time, "the idea behind [it] was to show how salaries can be used to measure the value of work and to show national differences within the European Union." By changing the title of the work to "Take the Money and Run" Haaning "questions artists' rights and their working conditions in order to establish more equitable norms within the art industry."

In a statement in regards to the court ruling, Andersson said: "We now have a judgment, and we will carefully examine it. There is a four-week period for appeal for both parties, and as long as the case can still be appealed, we have no further comments."

The stunt is reminiscent of Banksy, the anonymous artist who often leaves spray-painted artwork in public places, without leaving any other trace of his presence. In 2018, one of the artist's paintings – an image of a girl reaching for a heart-shaped balloon – sold for $1.4 million at auction – and immediately self-shredded in front of auction-goers the moment it was sold.

While the piece essentially self-destructed after the auction, it yielded yet another sale. The shredded pieces of canvas were sold for $25.4 million in October 2021 – a record for the artist.

Similar art antics have made headlines in recent years. A banana duct-taped to a wall at Miami's Art Basel in 2019 sold as an artwork for $120,000 – and then was eaten by performance artist David Datuna at the art convention.

CBS News has reached out to Haaning and the gallery that represents him for further comment and is awaiting response.


TOPICS: Arts/Photography; Business/Economy; Weird Stuff
KEYWORDS: fraud; lol
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To: escapefromboston

Not all.

Artistic strength runs in my family. Two of my neices and one of my own children have won art competitions. Beautiful pieces that could easily be displayed in any conservative’s home.

My sister’s daughter won a full scholarship to college based on her art. She’s already designing logos and advertising pieces for businesses and she’s only a Junior.

I have a photo one of her traditional/modern paintings. Traditional in the sense that it depicts a 19th century park scene, with a couple strolling along the path and children playing near the river’s edge, but modern because it was done with paint dots. It isn’t until you get up close that you see the painting style. From a few feet away, it looks like something that should be in a museum.

It’s simply beautiful. Won first place at the competition.

There are artists out there that want to create beauty, not just headlines and controversy.


21 posted on 09/20/2023 12:16:25 PM PDT by TheWriterTX (Trust not in earthly princes....!)
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To: nickcarraway

Other controversial paintings, Bernard Newman’s ‘Voice of Fire’, and Mark Rothko’s ‘No. 16’ come to mind, but they at least put some paint on the fabric.

Social statements can be called ‘art’ I suppose, but just because it involves stretched fabric over framing doesn’t mean it’s the same medium.


22 posted on 09/20/2023 12:47:31 PM PDT by larrytown (A Cadet will not lie, cheat, steal, or tolerate those who do. Then they graduate...)
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To: NWFree

Leftists gravitate to museum management like they do to media, academia, law, entertainment and other professions where producing actual results are NOT a requirement.


23 posted on 09/20/2023 1:09:00 PM PDT by Vigilanteman (The politicized state destroys aspects of civil society, human kindness and private charity.)
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To: nickcarraway

Hey, it’s modern art. Anything goes.


24 posted on 09/20/2023 2:02:54 PM PDT by Disambiguator
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To: shotgun

Was your post brought to us by Carl’s Jr.?


25 posted on 09/20/2023 2:04:13 PM PDT by Disambiguator
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To: nickcarraway

Is Haaning a pseudonym for Biden?


26 posted on 09/20/2023 2:15:08 PM PDT by KittyKares
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To: Disambiguator

F... YOU! I’m eating!


27 posted on 09/20/2023 2:18:33 PM PDT by shotgun
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To: Vigilanteman
Leftists gravitate to museum management like they do to media, academia, law, entertainment and other professions where producing actual results are NOT a requirement.

Nonsense. They gravitate to them because of the ability to raise vast amounts of money and influence the idle wealthy. Their 'results' aren't your expected results.
28 posted on 09/21/2023 1:06:29 PM PDT by larrytown (A Cadet will not lie, cheat, steal, or tolerate those who do. Then they graduate...)
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To: one guy in new jersey

They should have stayed away from El Paso, that’s where they ran into a great big hassle.


29 posted on 09/21/2023 1:17:28 PM PDT by Night Hides Not (Remember the Alamo! Remember Goliad! Remember Gonzales! Come and Take It!)
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To: larrytown
That too. But it is a matter of whether they are more ideological than lazy, more lazy than ideological or lazy because of their ideology.
30 posted on 09/21/2023 2:02:10 PM PDT by Vigilanteman (The politicized state destroys aspects of civil society, human kindness and private charity.)
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