A man has been arrested after writing ‘Epstein didn’t kill himself’ on the wall of a gallery where a $120,000 banana had been displayed.
Miami’s Art Basel has been the centre of attention for some very odd reasons recently, and the thing that started it all was this ridiculously expensive banana. The piece of fruit appeared at the art exhibition, which ran from December 5-8, where it was fastened to the wall with some duct tape.
Though you or I could have created the ‘artwork’ for approximately £1.20, it sold for a staggering $120,000. A few days later, performance artist David Datuna peeled the banana from the wall and ate it.
See how one man decided to fill the space:
Yesterday, December 8, 46-year-old Roderick Webber went to the Art Basel, which took place at the international gallery Perrotin, and scrawled the words ‘Epstien [sic] didn’t kill himself’ in the space where the banana used to be.
The message alludes to the conspiracy theories surrounding the death of convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. The 66-year-old took his own life on August 10 while in prison, but some have suggested the circumstances surrounding his death are suspicious.
At the time of his death, Epstein was awaiting trial on charges of sexually abusing teenage girls. Epstein had been put on suicide watch in July after he was found on his cell floor with bruises on his neck, though he was taken off it about a week before his death.
As a result, he was monitored less closely in the days leading to his suicide, though he was still supposed to be checked on every half hour. The two guards responsible for checking on Epstein have been accused of failing to fulfil their duties and they have since been arrested.
Webber used lipstick to scrawl his controversial message, though he failed to spell ‘Epstein’ correctly. He claimed the message was a form of art but police didn’t agree and the 46-year-old was swiftly escorted out of the exhibition.
Webber argued:
This is the gallery where anyone can do art, right?
Curators are said to have later covered up the message with a piece of white cardboard.
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Emily Brown first began delivering important news stories aged just 13, when she launched her career with a paper round. She graduated with a BA Hons in English Language in the Media from Lancaster University, and went on to become a freelance writer and blogger. Emily contributed to The Sunday Times Travel Magazine and Student Problems before becoming a journalist at UNILAD, where she works on breaking news as well as longer form features.