In May 2021, Italian artist Salvatore Garau shocked and fascinated the art world by selling an invisible sculpture for $18,000. The piece, titled Io Sono (“I Am”), contained no physical form, and yet, it sold for thousands at a reputable auction.

The art was unseen, intangible, and—according to Garau—highly conceptual. To some, it was a profound commentary on modern existence. To others, it symbolized the absurdity of a bloated art market. Either way, it forced a fundamental question to resurface in global conversations:

• What is art, really?

• What Exactly Was Sold?

Garau’s work, Io Sono, is a sculpture made of “nothing.” But to the artist, that nothingness is packed with meaning.

“The vacuum is nothing more than a space full of energy,” Garau explained in an interview with Il Giornale dell'Arte. “Even if we empty it, according to the Heisenberg uncertainty principle, that ‘nothing’ has a weight... therefore, it has energy that is condensed and transformed into particles.”

In short, Io Sono exists in the imagination of the viewer—and in the energetic presence of the space it occupies. For Garau, this was not a joke. He asserted that the act of conceiving the work, assigning it a conceptual space, and engaging with it mentally was the true art.

Physically, the “installation” is displayed in a 1.5 by 1.5-meter square, ideally in a well-lit, empty room. The buyer received a certificate of authenticity, not unlike those issued with traditional paintings or sculptures, verifying that they are indeed the sole owner of Io Sono.

The Auction and the Buyer

The sculpture was sold by Art-Rite, a Milan-based auction house that specializes in contemporary works. The piece was part of their 4-U New Attitudes auction on May 18, 2021. Though initially estimated to fetch between €6,000 and €9,000, heated bidding drove the final sale price to €15,000 (approximately USD 18,300 at the time).

The identity of the buyer has never been publicly revealed. However, Art-Rite confirmed the legitimacy of the sale, adding that the client was aware of what they were purchasing: an immaterial work.

Garau stated that he wasn’t surprised the piece sold.

“The success of the sale confirms an undeniable fact: you don’t see it, but it exists. It is a work that asks you to activate your imagination, like a poem,” he said in interviews following the sale.

Invisible, but Not His First

Io Sono was not Garau’s first foray into immaterial art. In February 2021, just a few months prior, he “installed” another invisible sculpture titled Buddha in Contemplation in Piazza della Scala, Milan. The “piece” was marked by a taped-off square on the ground with no physical object in it. Passersby were invited to engage with the space and reflect.

Garau’s decision to pursue invisible art came during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, when public spaces emptied out, social presence became intangible, and existential questions loomed large. His works aim to give form to that collective, yet formless, experience.

Art World Reaction: Brilliant or Bizarre?

Unsurprisingly, the sale of Io Sono ignited a firestorm of opinions. Some critics hailed Garau as a brilliant conceptual artist continuing the tradition of pioneers like Yves Klein, Marcel Duchamp, and John Cage.

Others dismissed it as a publicity stunt or a satire of postmodern art excesses. For critics like Jonathan Jones of The Guardian, the work poked fun at both the buyer and the broader art world.

But Garau was unfazed by the criticism. “Whether you agree with me or not, the fact that we are discussing it means the art is doing its job,” he said.

A Legacy of Immaterial Art

To understand Garau’s work, it’s helpful to place it in the context of conceptual art—a movement that gained momentum in the 1960s and 70s.

One of its earliest forms came from Yves Klein, who in 1958 offered collectors “zones of immaterial pictorial sensibility,” which were empty, invisible artworks that only existed once paid for. Collectors received a certificate and were required to throw gold into the Seine River to complete the performance. Many art historians now regard Klein’s work as a profound meditation on ownership, value, and belief.

Other similar precedents include:

• John Cage’s silent composition 4’33”, where a pianist sits in silence for four minutes and thirty-three seconds.

• Duchamp’s Fountain (1917), a signed urinal that challenged what could be considered art.

• Tino Sehgal’s performance-based works that are never documented and exist only during the live interaction.

In this lineage, Garau’s invisible sculptures aren’t as outrageous as they first appear—they’re part of a long intellectual and philosophical conversation within the art world.

How NFTs and the Digital Shift Played a Role

Garau’s work also arrived at a moment when the idea of owning non-physical assets was becoming mainstream. In March 2021, just months before Io Sono sold, digital artist Beeple made history by selling a JPEG artwork as an NFT for $69 million through Christie’s.

The digital art boom normalized the idea that ownership and value do not require tangibility. Like NFTs, Io Sono exists as an idea with documentation, not an object you can touch.

This philosophical overlap likely helped the public accept Garau’s work as more than a gimmick. It was, in some ways, the analog version of an NFT: concept-based, intangible, but legally and economically “real.”

Public Confusion and Media Frenzy

Global media quickly picked up the story. From CNN and Reuters to Vice and Al Jazeera, headlines marveled at the irony of someone paying thousands for “nothing.” The skepticism, mockery, and amusement were nearly universal.

“[Artist Sells Invisible Sculpture for $18,000, Proves Art is a Scam]” – (Vice headline)

“Modern art gone mad?” – (Daily Mail)

Garau, however, insisted that the misunderstanding lay not in his work, but in the public’s expectations. We’ve grown accustomed to associating “art” with materials: paint, clay, bronze, or canvas. But conceptual art, especially immaterial pieces, challenges that deeply.

“You don’t see it, but it exists. It’s a vacuum full of thoughts,” he explained in his statement.

Legal and Ethical Questions

The sale raised some serious questions as well:

• Can intangible art be insured?

• What happens if the certificate is lost or duplicated?

• How do you verify authenticity for something you can’t see?

In Garau’s case, the certificate issued acts like a title deed and legally protects the buyer’s ownership rights. It may seem absurd, but the same applies to NFT artworks, intellectual property rights, or even stock certificates. The value lies not in physical possession but in recognition, exclusivity, and belief.

Is It Still Art?

The ultimate question boils down to this: Is Io Sono really art?

To many in the traditional art world, the answer is yes. It’s part of a continuum of art that:

• Engages the audience intellectually.

• Redefines the relationship between artist, viewer, and space.

• Forces society to re-examine its assumptions about reality and perception.

To others, it’s an elaborate prank—or worse, a cynical money grab exploiting the art world’s love of the obscure.

But therein lies the power of Garau’s work. The conversation is the point. As with Duchamp’s urinal or Cage’s silent composition, the art lies not in the object, but in the reaction it provokes.

Salvatore Garau’s Io Sono may never be seen, but it undeniably exists—legally, intellectually, and culturally. At a time when much of our reality is shifting to the digital, abstract, and immaterial, the sculpture forces us to confront a paradox:

Can something be real if it cannot be seen?

By selling “nothing” for $18,000, Garau didn’t just sell a sculpture. He sold a thought experiment—a metaphysical mirror that reflects both the absurdity and the beauty of the human imagination.

And maybe, just maybe, that’s what art has always been about.