{"id":4112,"date":"2017-03-26T23:14:10","date_gmt":"2017-03-26T21:14:10","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.wakapedia.it\/?p=4112"},"modified":"2025-05-02T20:25:00","modified_gmt":"2025-05-02T18:25:00","slug":"maurizio-cattelan","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.wakapedia.it\/en\/maurizio-cattelan\/","title":{"rendered":"Maurizio Cattelan \uff08\u30de\u30a6\u30ea\u30c4\u30a3\u30aa\u30fb\u30ab\u30c6\u30e9\u30f3\uff09"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Born in 1960 into a modest family in Padua\u2014his father a truck driver, his mother a cleaning lady\u2014Maurizio Cattelan<\/strong> worked various jobs, including gardener, cook, letter carrier, and morgue nurse, before becoming one of the most renowned contemporary artists of his generation.<\/p>\n

Today, Cattelan is internationally recognized for his provocative and subversive works, such as the middle finger sculpture in Milan’s Piazza degli Affari (L.O.V.E.<\/i>), the horse hanging on a wall (The Ballad of Trotsky<\/i>)<\/strong>, and the wax likeness of<\/strong> Adolf Hitler (HIM<\/i>)<\/strong>, which sold at auction for $17 million<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

After moving to Milan in the 1980s, Cattelan\u2019s first exhibition, Stadium<\/i><\/strong>, a six-meter-long foosball table, debuted in 1991 at the Galleria d’Arte Moderna in Bologna. Over the course of his 30-year career, he has held solo exhibitions in major galleries and museums around the world\u2014including London, New York, and Paris\u2014and has participated in countless fairs and biennials, including the Venice Biennale<\/strong><\/a>.<\/p>\n

In 2010, Cattelan joined forces with photographer Pierpaolo Ferrari<\/strong><\/a> to create Toilet Paper<\/i><\/strong><\/a>, a pop, irreverent, and provocative magazine composed entirely of images. In 2017, he was also featured in the documentary Be Right Back<\/i><\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Cattelan splits his time between Milan<\/strong> and New York<\/strong> and is often spotted riding his treasured bicycle. One of his most iconic works, AMERICA<\/i><\/strong>, a fully functional 18-carat gold toilet<\/strong>, was first displayed at the Guggenheim, where it was used by more than 100,000 derrieres. It was later stolen during an exhibition in Britain. The \u201cworld\u2019s most famous toilet\u201d even made headlines when it was offered to Donald Trump (who politely declined) to furnish the White House.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Described by some critics as \u201cone of the greatest post-Duchampian artists of the current era,\u201d Cattelan now commands exorbitant prices for his works. His most recent and controversial piece, Comedian<\/i><\/strong>\u2014a simple banana duct-taped to a wall, widely known as the “$6 million banana”<\/strong>\u2014sparked global media attention. First unveiled in December 2019 at Art Basel Miami, it made headlines again in November 2024 when it sold at Sotheby\u2019s New York for $6 million<\/strong>. The buyer, Chinese billionaire Justin Sun, added to the work\u2019s mystique by eating the banana, calling it a \u201cunique artistic experience.\u201d<\/strong> This provocative gesture, like the work itself, aligns with Cattelan\u2019s ongoing exploration of the meaning and commodification of art.<\/p>\n

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WAKAPEDIA\u2019s\u00a0 Maurizio Cattelan<\/strong><\/h3>\n

\"\"<\/strong><\/em>Enigmatic or shy? Egomaniacal or generous? Audacious only in business or also with women? The multi-faceted personality of Cattelan is inseparable from his artistic practice, defined by a combination of fierce criticism of society and perverted fantasies.<\/p>\n

Sitting before us today, with his well-coiffed gray hair, cutting that distinct Italian figure that straddles the line between dandy and rake, is Maruizio Cattelan. He\u2019s approaching his 60<\/strong>th birthday, but his energy and style obscures his age dressed always in black or white, skinny jeans, striped or his own hand-made t-shirts.<\/p>\n

WHAT WE THINK ABOUT HIM<\/u><\/strong>
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\nMaurizio has the hyperactive energy of a little boy, forever dressed youthfully in t-shirts and skinny trousers highlighting his long legs. I must explain that the appreciation of his physique is a particularly Japanese taste. The Japanese love long legs and small heads. But the Maurizio\u2019s most impressive feature is undoubtedly his big nose! A nose fetishist would not be able to resist. We think Maurizio resembles a toy, and combined with a manner of speech often vulgar and littered with innuendo, we\u2019ve come to imagine him as a great big living sex-toy.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Maurizo speaks in a sequence of jokes, but the longer we talk, the more complex and puzzling he becomes. He is notorious for avoiding speaking for or about himself<\/strong>, and on the rare occasions he does broach the subject of his own past, there\u2019s no way to be sure what we\u2019re hearing is true. This is one the reasons that he\u2019s one of Wakapedia\u2019s favorite people.<\/p>\n

WHAT OTHERS SAY ABOUT HIM<\/u><\/strong><\/p>\n

“I wrote my dissertation on Cattelan after seeing a show in London featuring suicide squirrel … the idea of \u200b\u200ban innocent animal shooting itself struck me as something very raw. I like Maurizio because he succeeds in delivering a concept simply but still capable of making you reflect.” \u00a0\u00a0Francesco Bocchini<\/strong> (Former Contemporary Art Student in Milan).<\/p>\n

“I met Cattelan reading a book by Nicola Brio, where Maurizio was heavily quoted. Then, seeing his works, I was fascinated by the fact that they were accepted by society and the art world. I understood then that the personality of the artist was a critical factor. ” \u00a0\u00a0Yu Takagi<\/strong> (Former Contemporary Art Student in Tokyo).<\/p>\n

“Maurizio is a real influencer, nothing compared to dime-a-dozen bloggers!” \u00a0\u00a0Sara Waka<\/strong> (Former School of Art Communications).<\/p>\n

SO! MAURIZIO CATTELAN – SHINE YOUR LIGHT ON US LIKE A SHINY GOLD TOILET!!!<\/strong><\/h3>\n

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First you should know that Maurizio is famous for avoiding interviews. He escapes on his beloved bicycle if someone tries to talk to him, but this time we caught him!<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Wakapedia:<\/strong>\u00a0Look by now we know your tricks. Stop trying to get away!<\/p>\n

Maurizio:<\/strong> I have a dentist appointment!<\/p>\n

Wakapedia:<\/strong>\u00a0Your dentist appointment was yesterday. And don\u2019t tell me you are going to the hairdresser because I know you were at Shinichi two days ago. Now, tell us about your past!<\/p>\n

Maurizio:<\/strong>\u00a0Why? My past is boring! Why are people always in interested in others peoples shit?<\/p>\n

Wakapedia:<\/strong>\u00a0Because other people\u2019s shit is more interesting?<\/p>\n

\"\"Maurizio:<\/strong>\u00a0… I only have vague memories of my youth. I can only tell you that childhood was the worst period of my life.
\nI destroyed all family photos I appeared in. I don\u2019t have a single image of me between the age of 1<\/strong> and 18<\/strong>. Perhaps creating so many self-portraits is a way to compensate for that.<\/p>\n

Wakapedia:\u00a0<\/strong>So, is it possible that a traumatic upbringing had some influence on the art you would one day produce? You know, like a lot of contemporary artists?<\/p>\n

Maurizio<\/strong>:\u00a0Not necessarily. My family were devout Catholics with no interest in art or culture. We weren\u2019t rich. At times the toilet wasn\u2019t in the house and my mother bathed me once a week in the same water she washed the laundry. But I\u2019m not going to moan about being poor and miserable because I had everything I needed and never lacked anything essential.<\/p>\n

I never loved school. I didn\u2019t like school and that became a problem. At 12<\/strong> I was expelled and it didn\u2019t get any better seeing as I dropped out of high school to enrol in an evening school that I attended inconsistently. Thinking back, I realize that the school system didn\u2019t bestow on me anything it should have, apart from teaching me to survive. School certainly didn\u2019t inspired me to be an artist!<\/p>\n

Wakapedia:<\/strong>\u00a0You have an exceptionally wide range of interests though, and you never wanted to go to university?<\/p>\n

Maurizio:<\/strong> I did make one attempt, enrolling in architecture at the University of Venice<\/strong>, but I quickly realized I didn\u2019t want to spend all my time there! It seems the only thing I ever learned from education was how to survive unpleasant experiences.<\/p>\n