Donald Trump requested Van Gogh painting from the Guggenheim museum - but was offered GOLDEN TOILET instead

The president was offered the piece of art titled America, which is a fully-working solid 18-carat toilet

12:04, 26 Jan 2018Updated 12:04, 26 Jan 2018

Museum offered 18-karat toilet to Trump

A museum has turned down Donald Trump's request for a Van Gogh painting - and offered him a GOLDEN TOILET instead.

The Guggenheim Museum in New York did not want to let the 1888 masterpiece go and instead offered up the fully-working solid 18-carat gold toilet - an art installation by Maurizio Cattelan.

The toilet, titled America, has been at the museum since September 2016 and is available for the public to use.

It is reported that tens of thousands of people have made use of the gold piece.

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(Image: REUTERS)

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Trump's administration made the request(Image: AFP)

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President Trump's administration had written to ask if it could borrow Landscape with Snow, believed to have been the first painting Van Gogh made in Arles and was one of 10 he made of a snowy landscape from 1882 to 1889.

According to the Washington Post the Guggenheims chief curator, Nancy Spector, turned down the request.

In an email confirmed to the newspaper Ms Spector said: "Should the President and First Lady have any interest in installing it in the White House, [the artist] would like to offer it to the White House for a long-term loan.

"It is, of course, extremely valuable and somewhat fragile, but we would provide all the instructions for its installation and care."

[FILE-PHOTO-Maurizio-Cattelans-America-a-fully-functional-solid-gold-toilet-is-seen-at-Th.jpg]

(Image: REUTERS)

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Vincent van Gogh - Landscape with Snow [1888]

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According to the Guardian, at the time of Americas installation, Cattelan said he had the idea for the toilet before Trumps political rise, but said it was probably in the air.

He added that his golden toilet was in part a nod to Marcel Duchamps 1917 artwork Fountain, which was a urinal.

Trump is known to have a taste for gold and gilded objects.

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On Christmas Eve, he took calls from children while seated on a gold chair in a tapestried room at his Florida vacation home.

There is no word on whether America will be installed in the White House.

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