by A fully usable 18-karat gold toilet—created by the same artist who once duct-taped a banana to a gallery wall—has stunned the art world after selling for $12.1 million at a Sotheby’s auction. The piece, titled America, weighs 223 pounds, carries a bold satirical message, and continues to spark debate about wealth, value, and the meaning of modern art.
A Golden Satire of Excess
Created by provocateur Maurizio Cattelan, America debuted with a starting bid of $10 million, aligning with the market value of solid gold. Cattelan, known for blending humor with biting social commentary, described the toilet as a deliberate confrontation between luxury and necessity.
“Whatever you eat, a $200 lunch or a $2 hot dog, the results are the same, toilet-wise,” Cattelan once remarked.
The artist explained that placing something so valuable in “the least noble and most necessary place” was meant to expose the absurdity of excessive wealth and the contradictions of American consumer culture.
A Toilet Designed to Function—and Shock
Though sculptural in purpose, America was famously fully functional. Prior to auction day, Sotheby’s installed the gleaming fixture inside its New York headquarters, allowing the public to view—but not use—it. The auction house emphasized the work’s conceptual weight, calling it an:
“Incisive commentary on the collision of artistic production and commodity value.”
While Sotheby’s restricted public use during exhibitions, the toilet has been used by visitors in earlier installations, driving home the irreverent and confrontational nature of the piece. As Sotheby’s expert David Galperin noted:
“We don’t want people sitting on the art.”
A Piece with a Dramatic History
Before its latest sale, America belonged to an unnamed collector. The artwork is one of two identical gold toilets produced by Cattelan in 2016, both of which have traveled through major institutions.
One version made headlines when New York’s Guggenheim Museum offered it—half-jokingly—to the Trump White House after the administration requested to borrow a Van Gogh painting. The museum’s cheeky alternative captured national attention and reinforced Cattelan’s reputation for challenging norms.
The same toilet later embarked on a high-profile exhibition at England’s Blenheim Palace, where it was dramatically stolen.
The theft, which caused extensive water damage due to the plumbing required for the functional fixture, led to the arrest and conviction of two men. Despite extensive investigation, police concluded the toilet was likely broken apart and melted down, similar to the fate of jewelry stolen from the Louvre Museum weeks earlier.
Cattelan’s Legacy of Provocation
Cattelan’s notoriety extends far beyond a golden toilet. His 2019 work Comedian, featuring a banana duct-taped to a wall, became an instant cultural phenomenon—selling for $6 million and sparking global debate on the definition of art.
The banana had to be replaced multiple times due to mold or because it was eaten by visitors, further amplifying the commentary on disposability, value, and absurdity.
Read Also: Colorado Authorities Find 1.7M Fake Fentanyl Pills in Auctioned Storage Unit
The gold toilet follows similar themes, deliberately walking the line between satire and spectacle while forcing viewers to confront how society assigns worth.
A New Chapter for a Controversial Icon
With the recent $12.1 million sale, America enters a new phase of its already dramatic journey. While its new owner remains anonymous, interest in the work continues to grow—not just as an extravagant luxury object, but as a cultural symbol challenging perceptions of prestige, wealth, and artistic meaning.
As Cattelan’s body of work suggests, sometimes the loudest truths are delivered through humor, contradiction, and discomfort. America embodies all three.
For more stories that spark conversation and curiosity, visit mikeandjonpodcast.com.
