Maurizio Cattelan biography

Maurizio Cattelan is an Italian artist known for his artistic provocations that have made him the most well-known and controversial among contemporary Italian artists. He was born in Padua in 1960 to a family with no ties to the art world. From a young age, he was interested in radio technology, spending most of his time dismantling old objects like radios and televisions and acquiring skills in cutting and assembling various types of materials. This interest led him to enroll in the Technical Industrial Institute.
After graduating, Maurizio Cattelan finds himself doing various types of jobs, from gardener to waiter, without ever abandoning his first passion, namely the creation of compositions. Photos of these works are sent to art galleries around the world. When the Galleria Neon di Bologna agrees to exhibit one of his works, Maurizio Cattelan's life changes completely.
The artist's vision can only be understood if one takes into account his training, which is essentially self-taught. Despite the common belief that to become a successful artist it is mandatory to follow an educational path at prestigious schools and academies, Maurizio Cattelan has never shared this view, stating several times in interviews that, from his point of view, it is much more crucial to develop listening and confrontation skills than to enroll in and attend schools that involve high costs.
Maurizio Cattelan's artistic career began in the early 1990s with one of his first works, Stadium, which was exhibited at the Galleria d'Arte Moderna di Bologna. Stadium was a foosball table with real-life players placed at the ends. The white players were the reserves of the Cesena football team, while the black players were Senegalese workers who worked in Veneto.
From his debut, therefore, Maurizio Cattelan has managed to evoke great astonishment, attracting both admiration and disdain. The artist's works are a perfect blend of sculpture and performance. The artist from Padua is able to mock the art world and its mechanisms. In fact, in addition to being a respected and world-renowned artist, Cattelan is also a great communicator capable of taking advantage of both negative publicity and critics who point fingers and accuse him.
In 2010, he created a project in collaboration with photographer Pierpaolo Ferrari, giving birth to the magazine named Toiletpaper.
After taking a 5-year break between 2012 and 2017, he resumed his career and divides his time between Milan and New York. He is considered one of the highest-paid living artists. His works, in fact, have achieved a total value of about 86 million dollars.
Among his most representative works, we remember Il cavallo di Cattelan. This artwork, although known to the general public as Il cavallo di Cattelan, is actually titled Novecento. The reference to the film by director Bertolucci is clear, and it is a artwork created in 1997 that essentially consists of a taxidermy horse tied to the ceiling with a special leather harness. The posture and neck of the animal convey to the viewer a sense of frustration, of insecurity. According to what the artist stated about this artwork, the themes addressed are very common in his works. Therefore, it is not an isolated case.
La Nona Ora from 1999 is a sculpture that represents one of the most beloved popes in history, namely John Paul II, who appears lying down and struck by a meteorite. Made from various types of materials, this artwork refers to the financial and sexual scandals that the Church was going through at that time.
Comedian is among the works that have caused the most sensation and consists of the famous banana taped with a piece of gray duct tape to a wall. The artwork was exhibited at the Perrotin gallery at Art Basel Miami Beach. The idea was born during his travels. In fact, Maurizio Cattelan was designing a sculpture in the shape of a banana. To find the right inspiration, he would hang a banana, which he always carried with him, in the various hotel rooms where he stayed. After creating prototypes in different materials, the artist returned to the original idea: a real banana. The purpose of this artwork, which explicitly refers to pop art, is to induce people to reflect on the value of the artwork of art and the value given to objects. Comedian was also the protagonist of another event that involved it. In fact, an American contemporary artist, David Datuna, removed the banana from the stand and, in front of many people present, ate the fruit, declaring that he found Cattelan's artwork very tasty.
Cattelan's middle finger, or LOVE, an acronym for liberty, hate, vengeance, eternity. It is one of the artist's most imposing creations. LOVE, in fact, is over ten meters tall and was constructed using tons of Carrara marble. The artwork was placed in 2010 in the famous Piazza Affari in Milan, which houses the Stock Exchange. It depicts a hand showing the fascist salute, but the erosion of time has left only the middle finger visible. The exhibition location has a very specific meaning. In fact, the Milan Stock Exchange is one of the symbols of fascist architecture.