Have You Been Duped by the Modern Art Psyops?

Commentary It’s 2019 and you’re at Art Basel viewing a decaying banana duct-taped to a wall. This unconventional piece is aptly named, “the Comedian.” Bidding has stopped at $120,000. Do you raise it? Or perhaps you have a cool $137.5 million to play with. Do you spend it on Willem Kooning’s 1953 “Woman III,” a seemingly distorted scribble but now ranked as the fourth most expensive painting in the world? If you answered no and no, either you’re not so easily beguiled or you don’t adhere to a set of unconventional aesthetic standards embraced by billionaire art.  Or perhaps some purchasers may have an underlying motive beyond appreciation for artistic expression? Is it conceivable that the art world serves as a covert playground for money laundering activities?...