The Source: Why the $22,000 Yarra Banana will never be seen again

It was a classic Yarra council slip-up: spending $22,000 on a banana in the name of road safety. Whatever happened to it? There’s a bend in the tale.

The fate of the $22,000 Yarra banana has finally been decided. Picture: Alex Coppel

Putting the squeeze on Victoria’s movers, shakers and headline makers

It’s the news that art lovers had dreaded for so long. The Yarra Banana will not be coming back.

Even a replica of the revered artwork has been hidden from view. More on that later.

The banana sculpture, you might recall, was the subject of much controversy back in 2021 when Yarra council spent a $22,000 road safety grant on a yellow fruit artwork. Yes, you read that right.

But just days after its installation in Fitzroy (where else?) it was attacked by vandals with a saw. So it was taken away and stashed in a council depot.

But its icon status was assured.

The Yarra Banana will not be making a comeback. Picture: Alex Coppel.

The 1.8m high banana was even courted by US-based comedian John Oliver who wanted to exchange it with an alligator statue and said the “demonic f***ing banana” was “simply amazing”.

“It’s basically the Cate Blanchett of banana sculptures …’’

The trade never eventuated but the Yarra Banana did end up with its own Twitter/X account and the #freetheYarrabanana hashtag threatened to trend but, well, didn’t really.

The damage to the sculpture was so extensive it can’t be easily and cheaply repaired (a bit like the Captain Cook plaque in Edinburgh Gardens but that’s another story) and so it won’t return for the public’s viewing enjoyment.

The Source has learned, however, that a 20cm replica of the banana has been sighted in Richmond Town Hall. It was meant as a reminder of the controversy. But now it’s vanished too.

Got a tip? Let us know at [e-mail].

Originally published as The Source: Why the $22,000 Yarra Banana will never be seen again