Is It Art?

A literacy-based writing assignment for art students

In 2019 Italian artist, Maurizio Cattelan, duct taped this banana to a wall and titled it “Comedian.” It sold for $150,000.00!

At the end of this post is a Google Document you can open and save for yourself to use with students.

This banana sold for $150,000 and several others for $120,000.
But is it “art?”

My assignment to students was to view 3 YouTube videos and write a half-page argument stating if they believe it is art, and why. To get 100% students must include 3 quotes (one from each video) to argue their point. The best way to do this is to write a quote or two from each video as they watch and include it in the writing. HIGHLIGHT EACH QUOTE with a different color so the teacher can see right away that students did include all 3 for that 100% grade. (Hint: you can use a quote, and say you don’t agree with it.)
Video 1 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=so8sB25IL4o
Video 2 (Pro) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EKUtYldLA-o
Video 3 (Con) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lNI07egoefc

HERE is the Google Document. 

Remember to go to "FILE" and select "Make A Copy" so it is saved in your own Google Drive. DO NOT request access. You can make your own copy by following these directions. Please keep the attribution.