Toddler Smashes 50,000-Euro Modern Artwork at Swiss Fair - Reports

A three-year-old girl, who was brought to the renowned Art Basel by her mother, caused turmoil at the prestigious event, where works of art worth $20 million in total are said to have been on sale. When the mother passed a 50,000 euro piece of art depicting an oversized fly made by German artist Katharina Fritsch while pushing her daughter in a stroller, the girl became interested in the sculpture, which was standing on a pedestal, and reached for it, according to a report by Bild.

Apparently nobody noticed the toddler’s move until the fly fell off, clinking and clattering on the floor. This reportedly caused a stir at the exhibition, leaving visitors and staffers stunned, with the unfortunate parent standing nearly in tears. According to the Swiss outlet Nau, the fly sculpture lost its wings.

​Art Basel’s spokeswoman confirmed to Spiegel that they had been informed about the incident. However, the gallery, representing the artist who created the sculpture, is said to have stated that the work was not damaged.

The prominent art fair, which brought 20 million euros’ worth of works of art from all over the world to Basel, finished on Sunday. This year, the talk of the fair was Saudi artist Abdulnasser Gharem’s installation, called "The Safe". It copied a prison cell with a dissecting table, which was a reference to the murder of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi in October last year.