When Art Gets Abstract – and Expensive
Some time ago, a banana taped to a white wall with duct tape sold for $120,000 at an art show. Yes, a real banana. Yes, just duct tape. And yes, that price is real.
People were confused. Some laughed. Some dismissed it entirely. But the artist called it art, not because of what it was, but because of what it represented. The idea, not the object, was what mattered.
That line stuck with me, because that’s how every project begins.
Soon after, another artist pushed the boundary even further. He sold an invisible sculpture for $18,000. There was nothing there. Just space. When asked why anyone would buy something they couldn’t see or touch, he said, “You can imagine anything inside it. You can be anyone in it.”
The Invisible Start
In project management, the start of every project is just like that invisible sculpture. There’s nothing tangible. No dashboards, no charts, no sprints. Only a brief. An idea. A conversation.
And just like that artist, we begin shaping something that doesn’t exist, yet.
We start putting thoughts into structure, aligning expectations, exploring dependencies, and bringing imagination into motion. It’s invisible work, but it’s very real. It’s the foundation that supports everything that follows.
And I couldn’t help but laugh and wonder, how long did the artist take to “create” that invisible sculpture? What could the timeline have looked like?
- Week 1: Think of nothing.
- Week 2: Visualise the nothing.
- Week 3: Install the nothing in the perfect spot.
- Week 4: Invoice $18,000.
Now that’s a milestone delivery, isn’t it? 😂
When It Works, It’s “Expected”
Here’s what’s ironic in our world.
If a project slips, everyone notices. If a delivery is late, or something breaks, or a small risk turns into a real issue, the spotlight turns on. Discussions happen, emails fly, and sometimes, reputations take a hit.
But when the project goes live exactly as planned, with no drama, no noise, nothing.
No applause. No thank you notes. Maybe a quiet “great” in passing, but that’s about it.
That’s because people expect success. Just like showing up to work on time. You won’t get a round of applause for arriving at 9:30 AM sharp, but if you’re late, you’ll likely be noticed, and not in a good way.
The Real Work Happens in Silence
Project managers and teams often operate like backstage crews. We’re not always seen, but we’re critical to the show.
We anticipate problems before they arise.
We align people who think and work differently.
We handle uncertainty, balance timelines, smoothen communication, and adjust plans in real time.
We’re the ones who ensure momentum never stops, even when blockers pop up mid-sprint or change requests land late.
From the outside, everything looks steady. But we know it took constant attention, adaptation, and care to keep things moving.
The Value of What Can’t Be Seen
That’s why when I heard about that invisible sculpture being sold, I didn’t laugh at the idea, I actually related to it.
Because we, too, build from nothing. We take scattered ideas, loose ends, unclear goals, and shape them into deliverables that serve real people. We give form to imagination and direction to uncertainty.
But here’s where our paths differ from the artist’s.
Unlike the Sculpture, Our Imagination Becomes Real
The invisible sculpture remains open to interpretation, it’s meant to be anything the viewer wants. It doesn’t change, adapt, or evolve.
In project management, imagination becomes something that can be seen, experienced, tested, used, and even improved.
We can review it, add to it, or remove what doesn’t work. Clients and users can interact with it. It goes through feedback loops. It gets better over time. It lives in the real world.
Still, the core idea remains the same: imagination has value, when it reaches the right hands.
And in our world, that hand is often the project manager and their team, the people who take what didn’t exist and turn it into something that works.
To Every Project Manager Out There
If you’ve ever turned a vague idea into a working reality…
If you’ve ever delivered something complex without noise…
If you’ve ever worked quietly behind the scenes, knowing success will go unnoticed, but failure won’t…
You’re the sculptor of invisible beginnings.
You give form to ideas.
And while you may not always get the applause, you’ve brought imagination to life.
Because no great project ever starts without it.
Also Read: Why Project Managers Add Buffer Time
Really…..!! 😁😁…beautiful 👌🏻👌🏻