We know art is a creative process that rewards individuality and encourages going beyond the limits of conventionality and several contemporary artists have created art that redefines our knowledge of art processes and forms and tickles our imagination, while others are so eccentric, they test the limits of our acceptance. The subject of this article falls into the latter category.

Italian artist Salvatore Garau created a piece of "immaterial" sculpture which is essentially empty space titled “I am”. the invisible work of art basically represents a void; a technically empty space that is actually occupied by the energy of the sculpture.

If you think this is outrageous and something no one should ever spend money on, you are in for a bigger surprise as this piece of immaterial art has been scooped up by a private collector who doled out fifteen thousand euros (€15,000) for it at an auction organized by Art-Rite, one of the rare Italian auction houses that handle exhibitions dedicated exclusively to contemporary art.

The artist, Garau, had this to say about his unusual artwork:

"The successful outcome of the auction testifies to an irrefutable fact: The void is nothing but a space full of energy, and even if we empty it and nothing remains, according to Heisenberg’s uncertainty principle that nothingness has a weight. It, therefore, has an energy that condenses and transforms itself into particles, in short, in us! When I decide to “exhibit” an immaterial sculpture in a given space, that space will concentrate a certain quantity and density of thoughts in a precise point, creating a sculpture that from my title alone will take the most varied forms. After all, don’t we give shape to a God we have never seen?"

How do you own and display an 'invisible' sculpture?

According to the report in Italy 24 News, the work must be placed in a space that allows the dimensions of approximately 4.9 x 4.9 ft (150 x 150 cm) to be free of any obstructions, and the owner of the invisible sculpture gets a certificate that guarantees the sculpture's authenticity.

If it still sounds outrageous and unconvincing to you, well, there is an upside to it – the sculpture, or rather, non-sculpture, has zero carbon footprint, thus, no negative impact on the environment. 

Garau considers his invisible sculpture to be a perfect metaphor for our time, just like this year's astronomical rise of NFT art.

As Gurau's invisible sculpture joins the equally unbelievable banana-duct-taped-to-a-white-wall 'artwork' which sold for $120,000 in December 2019, it begs the question of has such depictions of what art is gone too far or will the success of these crazy artforms inspire even more outrageous replications or is the appeal of these artforms based solely based on their novelty? Maybe it's time we reconsider what art is and accept all expressions of it.

If you aren't cut out for such experimental contemporary art yet, and would rather go for the good ol' tangible sculpture, Aworanka has got you! This piece by iconic Nigerian sculptor Ben Osawe is as solid as solid gets.