Maurizio Cattelan (born 21 September 1960) is an Italian artist. Known primarily for his hyperrealistic

sculpture Sculpture is the branch of the visual arts that operates in three dimensions. Sculpture is the three-dimensional art work which is physically presented in the dimensions of height, width and depth. It is one of the plastic arts. Durable ...

s and installations, Cattelan's practice also includes curating and publishing. His

satirical Satire is a genre of the visual, literary, and performing arts, usually in the form of fiction and less frequently non-fiction, in which vices, follies, abuses, and shortcomings are held up to ridicule, often with the intent of shaming or ...

approach to art has resulted in him being frequently labelled as a joker or prankster of the art world. Self-taught as an artist, Cattelan has exhibited internationally in museums and

Biennials A biennial plant is a flowering plant that, generally in a temperate climate, takes two years to complete its biological life cycle. Life cycle In its first year, the biennal plant undergoes primary growth, during which its vegetative structures ...

. In 2011 the

Guggenheim Museum The Guggenheim Museums are a group of museums in different parts of the world established (or proposed to be established) by the Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation. Museums in this group include: Locations Americas * The Solomon R. Guggenhei ...

, New York presented a retrospective of his work. Some of Cattelan's better-known works include ''

America The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

'', consisting of a solid gold toilet; ''La Nona Ora'', a sculpture depicting a fallen

Pope The pope ( la, papa, from el, πάππας, translit=pappas, 'father'), also known as supreme pontiff ( or ), Roman pontiff () or sovereign pontiff, is the bishop of Rome (or historically the patriarch of Rome), head of the worldwide Cathol ...

who has been hit by a

meteorite A meteorite is a solid piece of debris from an object, such as a comet, asteroid, or meteoroid, that originates in outer space and survives its passage through the atmosphere to reach the surface of a planet or moon. When the original object ...

; and ''

Comedian A comedian or comic is a person who seeks to entertain an audience by making them laugh. This might be through jokes or amusing situations, or acting foolish (as in slapstick), or employing prop comedy. A comedian who addresses an audienc ...

'', a fresh banana duct-taped to a wall.

Early life and education

Cattelan was born on 21 September 1960 in

Padua Padua ( ; it, Padova ; vec, Pàdova) is a city and ''comune'' in Veneto, northern Italy. Padua is on the river Bacchiglione, west of Venice. It is the capital of the province of Padua. It is also the economic and communications hub of the ...

, Italy. He was raised there by his mother, a cleaning lady, and his father, a truck driver. He started his career in the early 1980s by designing and producing wooden furniture in

Forlì Forlì ( , ; rgn, Furlè ; la, Forum Livii) is a '' comune'' (municipality) and city in Emilia-Romagna, Northern Italy, and is the capital of the province of Forlì-Cesena. It is the central city of Romagna. The city is situated along the Vi ...

(Italy). Cattelan has no formal training in art. He has said that in addition to reading art catalogues, "making shows has been my school".

Art practice

Humour and satire are at the core of Cattelan's work;Worth, Alexi. "A Fine Italian Hand." New York Times Magazine (2010): 68. Newspaper Source Plus. Web. 16 November 2011. this approach has often seen him labelled variously as an art scene joker, jester or prankster. He has been described by Jonathan P. Binstock, curator of contemporary art at the

Corcoran Gallery of Art The Corcoran Gallery of Art was an art museum in Washington, D.C., United States, that is now the location of the Corcoran School of the Arts and Design, a part of the George Washington University. Overview The Corcoran School of the Arts & Desig ...

"as one of the great post- Duchampian artists and a smartass, too". Discussing the topic of originality with ethnographer,

Sarah Thornton Sarah L. Thornton (born 1965) is a writer, ethnographer and sociologist of culture. Thornton has authored three books and many articles about artists, the art market, technology and design, the history of music technology, dance clubs, raves ...

, Cattelan explained, "Originality doesn't exist by itself. It is an evolution of what is produced. ... Originality is about your capacity to add." His work was often based on simple puns or subverts clichéd situations by, for example, substituting animals for people in sculptural tableaux. "Frequently morbidly fascinating, Cattelan's humour sets his work above the visual pleasure one-liners," wrote Carol Vogel of the ''New York Times''. Cattelan's first artwork has been noted as a photo art piece in 1989 entitled ''Lessico Familiare'' (Family Syntax), a framed self-portrait in which he is depicted forming a Hand Heart over his naked chest. Cattelan is commonly noted for his use of

taxidermy Taxidermy is the art of preserving an animal's body via mounting (over an armature) or stuffing, for the purpose of display or study. Animals are often, but not always, portrayed in a lifelike state. The word ''taxidermy'' describes the proc ...

during the mid-1990s. ''Novecento'' (1997) consists of the taxidermied body of a former racehorse named Tiramisu, which hangs by a harness in an elongated, drooping posture. Another work utilizing taxidermy is ''Bidibidobidiboo'' (1996), a miniature depiction of a

squirrel Squirrels are members of the family Sciuridae, a family that includes small or medium-size rodents. The squirrel family includes tree squirrels, ground squirrels (including chipmunks and prairie dogs, among others), and flying squirrels. ...

slumped over its kitchen table, a

handgun A handgun is a short-barrelled gun, typically a firearm, that is designed to be usable with only one hand. It is distinguished from a long gun (i.e. rifle, shotgun or machine gun, etc.), which needs to be held by both hands and also braced ag ...

at its feet. In 1999 he started making life-size wax effigies of various subjects, including himself. One of his best known sculptures, ''La Nona Ora'' (1999), consists of an effigy of

Pope John Paul II Pope John Paul II ( la, Ioannes Paulus II; it, Giovanni Paolo II; pl, Jan Paweł II; born Karol Józef Wojtyła ; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was the head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 1978 until his ...

in full ceremonial costume being crushed by a meteor.

Curating

In 1999, he curated with

Jens Hoffmann Jens Hoffmann Mesén (born 1974 in San José, Costa Rica) is a writer, editor, educator, and exhibition maker. His work has attempted to expand the definition and context of exhibition making. From 2003 to 2007 Hoffmann was director of exhibitio ...

on the Caribbean Biennial. In 2002 he co-founded "The Wrong Gallery", a glass door leading to a 2.5 square foot exhibition space at 516A½ West 20th street in New York City. After the building housing the gallery was sold, the door and gallery was put on display within the collection of the Tate Modern until 2009. With long-term collaborators Ali Subotnick and Massimiliano Gioni, Cattelan also curated the 2006

Berlin Biennale The Berlin Biennale (full name: Berlin Biennale für zeitgenössische Kunst, Berlin Biennale for Contemporary Art) is a contemporary art exhibition, which has been held at various locations in Berlin, Germany, every two to three years since 1998. T ...

. Articles by Cattelan frequently appear in international publications such as ''

Flash Art ''Flash Art'' is a contemporary art magazine, and an Italian and international publishing house. Originally published bilingually, both in Italian and in English, since 1978 is published in two separate editions, Flash Art Italia (Italian) and Fl ...

''.

Publishing

From 1996–2007 Cattelan collaborated with Dominique Gonzalez-Foster and Paola Manfrin on the publication ''Permanent Food'', an occasional journal consisting of a pastiche of pages torn from other magazines and submissions by artists of similar material. From 2002 he collaborated on the satirical arts journal ''Charley'', a series on contemporary artists. In 2009, Cattelan teamed up with Italian photographer Pierpaolo Ferrari to create an editorial for ''W'' magazine's Art Issue. In 2010, they founded the magazine ''Toiletpaper'', a bi-annual, picture-based publication. As part of a public art series at the

High Line The High Line is a elevated linear park, greenway and rail trail created on a former New York Central Railroad spur on the west side of Manhattan in New York City. The High Line's design is a collaboration between James Corner Field Opera ...

in 2012, ''Toiletpaper'' was commissioned with a billboard at the corner of 10th Avenue and West 18th Street in New York, showing an image of a woman's manicured and jeweled fingers, detached from their hands, emerging from a vibrant blue velvet background. In 2014, Cattelan and Ferrari produced a fashion spread for the Spring Fashion issue of ''New York''. In the project entitled ''1968,'' A ''Toiletpaper'' collaboration between Maurizio Cattelan, Pierpaolo Ferrari and the Deste Foundation in Athens, Cattelan celebrates the works and time of

Dakis Joannou Dakis Joannou (Leonidas Ioannou; el, Δάκης Ιωάννου; born December 30, 1939) is a Greek Cypriot industrialist and art collector. He is considered to be one of the leading collectors of contemporary art in the world and is famous for ac ...

and his collection of radical design. ''Toilet Paper'' differs from the two previously magazine projects, as its photographs were planned and designated solely for the magazine. The level of originality for this magazine surpassed the others, providing the audience vague, oddly familiar photographs to peruse through. ''Toilet Paper'' is a surrealist pantomime of images that the viewer cannot easily trace back to a starting point, while they've most likely been conjured by popular culture. It is a whirlwind of loud colors mixed in with the occasional black-and-white photo: "the pictures probe the unconscious, tapping into sublimated perversions and spasms of violence."

Selected works

HIM byMaurizio Cattelan in Warsaw Ghetto 2013

*''Working Is a Bad Job'' (1993): At the 1993 Venice Biennale he leased his allotted space to an advertising agency, which installed a billboard promoting a new perfume.Maurizio Cattelan: All, November 4, 2011 – January 22, 2012
Guggenheim Museum, New York. * ''Errotin, le vrai Lapin'' (1995), in which he persuaded his gallerist Emmanuel Perrotin to wear a giant pink rabbit costume shaped like a phallus to Cattelan's gallery opening * ''Another Fucking Readymade'' (1996): As a profound example of a found art hall; for an exhibition at the de Appel Arts Center in Amsterdam, he stole the entire contents of another artist's show from a nearby gallery with the idea of passing it off as his own work, until the police insisted he return the loot on threat of arrest. * ''Turisti'' (1997), taxidermied pigeons and fake pigeon feces exhibited in the Italian Pavilion at the Venice Biennale of 1997 * In 1997, at the Consortium in Dijon, Cattelan dug a coffin-shaped hole in the floor of the museum's main gallery. * ''Mother'' (1999); at the 1999

Venice Biennale The Venice Biennale (; it, La Biennale di Venezia) is an international cultural exhibition hosted annually in Venice, Italy by the Biennale Foundation. The biennale has been organised every year since 1895, which makes it the oldest of ...

, Cattelan executed this piece, a project that involved an Indian

fakir Fakir ( ar, فقیر, translit=faḳīr or ''faqīr'') is an Islamic term traditionally used for Sufi Muslim ascetics who renounce their worldly possessions and dedicate their lives to the worship of God. They do not necessarily renounce al ...

, who practiced a daily ritual of being buried beneath sand in a small room, with only his clasped hands visible. * ''Untitled'' (2001), installation created for the

Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen Municipal Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen () is an art museum in Rotterdam in the Netherlands. The name of the museum is derived from the two most important collectors of Frans Jacob Otto Boijmans and Daniël George van Beuningen. It is located ...

in Rotterdam that depicts the artist peering mischievously from a hole in the floor at a gallery of 17th-century Dutch masters. * ''Him'' (2001): a sculpture resembling a schoolboy kneeling in prayer, except that the head has been replaced with the realistic likeness of

Adolf Hitler Adolf Hitler (; 20 April 188930 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was dictator of Germany from 1933 until his death in 1945. He rose to power as the leader of the Nazi Party, becoming the chancellor in 1933 and the ...

. * As part of the 2001

, he erected a full sized

HOLLYWOOD sign The Hollywood Sign is an American landmark and cultural icon overlooking Hollywood, Los Angeles, California. Originally the Hollywoodland Sign, it is situated on Mount Lee, in the Beachwood Canyon area of the Santa Monica Mountains. Spelli ...

over the largest rubbish tip on

Palermo Palermo ( , ; scn, Palermu , locally also or ) is a city in southern Italy, the capital of both the autonomous region of Sicily and the Metropolitan City of Palermo, the city's surrounding metropolitan province. The city is noted for its ...

Sicily (man) it, Siciliana (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = Ethnicity , demographics1_footnotes = , demographi ...

. * ''La rivoluzione siamo noi (We Are The Revolution)'' (2000), features a miniature Maurizio Cattelan, dangling from a

Marcel Breuer Marcel Lajos Breuer ( ; 21 May 1902 – 1 July 1981), was a Hungarian-born modernist architect and furniture designer. At the Bauhaus he designed the Wassily Chair and the Cesca Chair, which ''The New York Times'' have called some of the most i ...

–designed clothing rack. In this depiction, Cattelan contrasts the German artist

Joseph Beuys Joseph Heinrich Beuys ( , ; 12 May 1921 – 23 January 1986) was a German artist, teacher, performance artist, and art theorist whose work reflected concepts of humanism, sociology, and anthroposophy. He was a founder of a provocative art mov ...

statement, "every man is an artist", with his own, "I am not an artist". * ''Don't Forget to Call Your Mother'' (2000), is a photograph by Cattelan that was utilized as a show invitation card, upon its introduction, by the

Marian Goodman Gallery Marian may refer to: People * Mari people, a Finno-Ugric ethnic group in Russia * Marian (given name), a list of people with the given name * Marian (surname), a list of people so named Places * Marian, Iran (disambiguation) * Marian, Queensl ...

in New York City. "The sign ironically reminds customers of their mothers' worries each time they approach the bar to drink...in mimicking this stern parental directive, the sign draws on attitudes regarding authority, independence, and disobedience" (Susan Thompson).Spector, Nancy, and Maurizio Cattelan. "Catalogue 989-2011" ''Maurizio Cattelan: All''. New York, NY: Guggenheim Museum Publications :, 2011. Print. * ''Daddy, Daddy'' (2008) was initially premiered in the group exhibition ''theanyspacewhatever'' (2008–09) at the Guggenheim Museum. The piece was a site-specific installation in a small pool at the bottom of the

Frank Lloyd Wright Frank Lloyd Wright (June 8, 1867 – April 9, 1959) was an American architect, designer, writer, and educator. He designed more than 1,000 structures over a creative period of 70 years. Wright played a key role in the architectural movements o ...

atrium rotunda, where a life-size

Pinocchio Pinocchio ( , ) is a fictional character and the protagonist of the children's novel '' The Adventures of Pinocchio'' (1883) by Italian writer Carlo Collodi of Florence, Tuscany. Pinocchio was carved by a woodcarver named Geppetto in a Tuscan ...

doll lay face-down, giving the impression that he had jumped or fallen from above. "Cattelan's life-size effigy of a beloved fairytale character lying face down in the museum's fountain reads as a crime scene replete with questions of intent: suicide, homicide, or ill-planned escape?" * L.O.V.E. (2011), a white marble sculpture middle finger sticking straight up from an otherwise fingerless hand, pointing away from

Borsa Italiana Borsa Italiana, based in Milan, is the Italian stock exchange. It manages and organises domestic market, regulating procedures for admission and listing of companies and intermediaries and supervising disclosures for listed companies.italy24.i ...

in Milan. * ''Turisti'' (2011), for the 2011 Venice Biennale, was made of 2,000 embalmed pigeons, not to be confused with the similarly-named ''Turisti'' (1997). *''

'' (2016), an 18-

karat The fineness of a precious metal object (coin, bar, jewelry, etc.) represents the weight of ''fine metal'' therein, in proportion to the total weight which includes alloying base metals and any impurities. Alloy metals are added to increase hardne ...

solid gold toilet. In September 2017, after the

Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum The Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, often referred to as The Guggenheim, is an art museum at 1071 Fifth Avenue on the corner of East 89th Street on the Upper East Side of Manhattan in New York City. It is the permanent home of a continuously exp ...

declined a

Trump Administration Donald Trump's tenure as the List of presidents of the United States, 45th president of the United States began with Inauguration of Donald Trump, his inauguration on January 20, 2017, and ended on January 20, 2021. Trump, a Republican Party ...

White House The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. It is located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., and has been the residence of every U.S. president since John Adams in ...

request to loan it

Van Gogh Vincent Willem van Gogh (; 30 March 185329 July 1890) was a Dutch Post-Impressionist painter who posthumously became one of the most famous and influential figures in Western art history. In a decade, he created about 2,100 artworks, inc ...

's 1888 painting '' Landscape with Snow'' for the President's private rooms, the museum chief curator Nancy Spector offered to loan them ''America '' instead. On September 14, the work was stolen while installed at

Blenheim Palace Blenheim Palace (pronounced ) is a country house in Woodstock, Oxfordshire, England. It is the seat of the Dukes of Marlborough and the only non- royal, non-episcopal country house in England to hold the title of palace. The palace, ...

in the United Kingdom, where it was available for use as part of an exhibition of Cattelan's works, (while on loan from the permanent collection of the Solomon R Guggenheim Museum in New York City). It had been placed in a water closet formerly used by

Winston Churchill Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill (30 November 187424 January 1965) was a British statesman, soldier, and writer who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom twice, from 1940 to 1945 during the Second World War, and again from ...

. As the work had been connected to the building's water pipes, the theft therein caused structural damage and flooding. A man was arrested in connection with the incident. Cattelan later commented: "I always liked heist movies and finally I'm in one of them." *''

'' (2019), a banana duct taped to a wall. Held at

Art Basel Miami Art Basel is a for-profit, privately owned and managed, international art fair staged annually in Basel, Switzerland; Miami Beach; Hong Kong and from 2022, Paris. Art Basel works in collaboration with the host city's local institutions to he ...

. Eaten by Georgian artist

David Datuna David Datuna ( ka, დეივიდ დათუნა; February 10, 1974 – May 23, 2022) was a Georgian-born American artist who lived in New York City. His ''Viewpoint of Millions'' series explores the sources and meaning of cultural ide ...

in a performance art called ''Hungry Artist''

Exhibitions

Solo exhibitions

Migros Museum für Gegenwartskunst The Migros Museum of Contemporary Art (German: Migros Museum für Gegenwartskunst) is a museum for contemporary art in Zürich, Switzerland. The museum was founded in 1996 . It is the successor to the Halle für Internationale neue Kunst, which ...

, Zurich (2000) *

Centre Georges Pompidou The Centre Pompidou (), more fully the Centre national d'art et de culture Georges-Pompidou ( en, National Georges Pompidou Centre of Art and Culture), also known as the Pompidou Centre in English, is a complex building in the Beaubourg area of ...

, Paris *The

Kunsthalle Basel Kunsthalle Basel is a contemporary art gallery in Basel, Switzerland. As Switzerland's oldest and still most active institution for contemporary art, Kunsthalle Basel forms a vital part of Basel's cultural centre and is located next to the city's ...

, Basel (1999) *Project 65 at the

Museum of Modern Art The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) is an art museum located in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, on 53rd Street between Fifth and Sixth Avenues. It plays a major role in developing and collecting modern art, and is often identified as one of t ...

, New York (1999) *

Castello di Rivoli The Castle of Rivoli is a former Residence of the Royal House of Savoy in Rivoli (Metropolitan City of Turin, Italy). It is currently home to the Castello di Rivoli – Museo d'Arte Contemporanea, the museum of contemporary art of Turin. In 19 ...

, Turin (1997) *Le Consortium, Dijon *

Hôtel des Monnaies, Paris The Hôtel des Monnaies is an 18th-century building located at 11 Quai de Conti in the 6th arrondissement of Paris, which has housed the Monnaie de Paris (the Paris Mint) since its construction. It is considered a prime example of pre-Revoluti ...

(2017) *

Wiener Secession The Vienna Secession (german: Wiener Secession; also known as ''the Union of Austrian Artists'', or ''Vereinigung Bildender Künstler Österreichs'') is an art movement, closely related to Art Nouveau, that was formed in 1897 by a group of Austri ...

, Vienna (1997) *

Skulptur Projekte Münster Skulptur Projekte Münster (English: Sculpture Projects Münster) is an exhibition of sculptures in public places in the town of Münster (Germany). Held every ten years since 1977, the exhibition shows works of invited international artists for ...

(1997) *

Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles The Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles (MOCA) is a contemporary art museum with two locations in greater Los Angeles, California. The main branch is located on Grand Avenue in Downtown Los Angeles, near the Walt Disney Concert Hall. MOCA's ...

(2003) *

Museum Ludwig Museum Ludwig, located in Cologne, Germany, houses a collection of modern art. It includes works from Pop Art, Abstract and Surrealism, and has one of the largest Picasso collections in Europe. It holds many works by Andy Warhol and Roy Lic ...

, Cologne (2003) *''Untitled'' at the

Nicola Trussardi Foundation The Nicola Trussardi Foundation is a non-profit institution for the promotion of contemporary art and culture. Created in 1996, the Nicola Trussardi Foundation ran its own exhibiting space in Piazza della Scala in Milan. From autumn 2003, under the ...

(2004)

Retrospectives

A major retrospective titled ''All'', assembling 130 objects of Cattelan's career since 1989, opened in 2011 at the

, New York. On the occasion of the exhibition, Cattelan announced his early retirement. In 2016 the

Monnaie de Paris The Monnaie de Paris (Paris Mint) is a government-owned institution responsible for producing France's coins. Founded in AD 864 with the Edict of Pistres, it is the world's oldest continuously running minting institution. In 1973, the mint reloc ...

his retrospective of his work titled ''Not Afraid of Love''.

Biennials

Cattelan has participated in the

(1993, 1997, 1999, and 2001),

Manifesta Manifesta, also known as the European Nomadic Biennial, is a European pan-regional contemporary cultural biennale. History Manifesta was founded in 1994 by Dutch art historian Hedwig Fijen. The first edition took place in Rotterdam. One of t ...

2 (1998), Luxembourg,

Melbourne International Biennial 1999 The Melbourne International Biennial 1999 was a cultural initiative of the City of Melbourne in partnership with Arts Victoria, the Victoria Department of Premier and Cabinet, the Ian Potter Museum of Art, and The University of Melbourne. Ori ...

, and the 2004

Whitney Biennial The Whitney Biennial is a biennial exhibition of contemporary American art, typically by young and lesser known artists, on display at the Whitney Museum of American Art in New York City, United States. The event began as an annual exhibition ...

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

.Maurizio Cattelan
Marian Goodman Gallery, New York.

Art market

At a

Sotheby's Sotheby's () is a British-founded American multinational corporation with headquarters in New York City. It is one of the world's largest brokers of fine and decorative art, jewellery, and collectibles. It has 80 locations in 40 countries, an ...

auction in 2004, Cattelan's ''Ballad of Trotsky'' (1996), a taxidermic horse suspended by ropes from a ceiling, was sold for $2 million, a record for the artist.

Recognition

Cattelan was a finalist for the Guggenheim's Hugo Boss Prize in 2000, received an honorary degree in Sociology from the University of Trento, Italy. In 2004, he was awarded the Arnold Bode prize from the Kunstverein Kassel, Germany. A career prize (a gold medal) was awarded to Maurizio Cattelan by the

15th Rome Quadriennale The 15th Rome Quadriennale or XV Rome Quadriennale (Italian pronunciation: ''Quindicesima Quadriennale di Roma'') is an Italian art exhibition (the 15th edition of the Rome Quadrennial) held between 19 June and 14 September 2008 at its historical si ...

. On 24 March 2009, at the

MAXXI MAXXI ( it, Museo nazionale delle arti del XXI secolo, italic=no, "national museum of 21st-century arts") is a national museum of contemporary art and architecture in the Flaminio neighborhood of Rome, Italy. The museum is managed by a foundation ...

Museum of Rome, came to receive the prize, claiming to be the real Cattelan.

Film

A documentary film titled '' Maurizio Cattelan: Be Right Back'' was released in 2017. The film premiered at the

Tribeca Film Festival The Tribeca Festival is an annual film festival organized by Tribeca Productions. It takes place each spring in New York City, showcasing a diverse selection of film, episodic, talks, music, games, art, and immersive programming. Tribeca was f ...

, and played in theaters in 2017. The film, directed by Maura Axelrod, featured curator Massimiliano Gioni standing in for Cattelan. It followed Cattelan's career retrospective at the

in New York.

Television

On the occasion of his 2011 retrospective at the Guggenheim Museum in New York, Cattelan was profiled on the American television program ''

60 Minutes ''60 Minutes'' is an American television news magazine broadcast on the CBS television network. Debuting in 1968, the program was created by Don Hewitt and Bill Leonard, who chose to set it apart from other news programs by using a unique st ...

''. In 2016 a documentary about his life and work, ''The Art World's Prankster: Maurizio Cattelan'', aired on BBC.

Controversies

Cattelan was represented hanged with a noose around his neck in 2010 in the

Vatican Vatican may refer to: Vatican City, the city-state ruled by the pope in Rome, including St. Peter's Basilica, Sistine Chapel, Vatican Museum The Holy See * The Holy See, the governing body of the Catholic Church and sovereign entity recognized ...

by the Sicilian artist

Giuseppe Veneziano Giuseppe Veneziano (born February 22, 1971, in Mazzarino, Sicily, Mazzarino, Caltanissetta, Sicily) is an Italian painter and one of the leading figures of Italian art groups "New Pop" and "Italian Newbrow". Politics, sex and religion are the th ...

. In 2017, when the

Trump administration Donald Trump's tenure as the List of presidents of the United States, 45th president of the United States began with Inauguration of Donald Trump, his inauguration on January 20, 2017, and ended on January 20, 2021. Trump, a Republican Party ...

requested the loan of a

Vincent van Gogh Vincent Willem van Gogh (; 30 March 185329 July 1890) was a Dutch Post-Impressionist painter who posthumously became one of the most famous and influential figures in Western art history. In a decade, he created about 2,100 artworks, inc ...

painting, from the Guggenheim collection, '' Landscape With Snow'', the museum's chief curator Nancy Spector suggested instead Cattelan's work ''

'', a sculpture of a gold toilet. On December 7, 2019, ''

'', an artwork created by Cattelan in an edition of three for the 2019 installment of

Art Basel Miami Beach Art Basel is a for-profit, privately owned and managed, international art fair staged annually in Basel, Switzerland; Miami Beach; Hong Kong and from 2022, Paris. Art Basel works in collaboration with the host city's local institutions to help ...

consisting of a

banana A banana is an elongated, edible fruit – botanically a berry – produced by several kinds of large herbaceous flowering plants in the genus ''Musa''. In some countries, bananas used for cooking may be called "plantains", disting ...

held to a wall by duct tape, sold to an unnamed French art collector for $120,000 US. The fruit in the work was later summarily eaten by Georgian performance artist

, who called his piece ''Hungry Artist''. Meanwhile

Galerie Perrotin Perrotin is a contemporary art gallery founded in 1990 by Emmanuel Perrotin, at the age of twenty-one. He has since opened over eighteen spaces, with the aim of offering increasingly vibrant and creative environments in which to experience art. H ...

, which is exhibiting the piece, replaced the fruit and stated that it is an "idea", while Datuna said "it was very delicious".