Listen Now: Empty Frames

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A Danish artist is cashing in on his craft, without actually doing any work. I’m Brian Banmiller on Business.

Recently a museum in Denmark paid an artist in advance to re-create two older sculptures. According to a written agreement obtained by Artnet the artist was asked to re-create works he had made years before. Art that represented the average annual incomes of an Austrian and a Dane. Instead, when the new art arrived and museum workers opened up the crate, they found two empty frames. And the artist had named the pieces “Take the Money and Run.” on a Danish radio show, he explained the move saying the art is that he has taken the museum’s money, it’s not theft but a breach of contract, and a breach of contract is part of the work. He says he would have had to pay four thousand dollars of his own money which frustrated him. Plus, he felt that recreating his old work would defeat the purpose of why they were made. As for the museum? It’s currently displaying the empty frames as part of its show called “Work it Out.” Brian Banmiller, CBS News.

About Brian

CBS News Radio national business journalist Brian Banmiller has spent more than 40 years in the news industry, covering business, politics and the economy on television, radio and in print. Currently, his “Banmiller on Business” reports are delivered to an audience of millions nationwide.