Maurizio Cattelan is the most famous italian artist of contemporary art.
Most of the people that bump into art don’t even know his name, but everybody know how to recognise his masterpieces.
Cattelan is the creator of the meteorite smashing into Pope’s head and of the hand with that middle-finger up which you can see right in front of the Borsa of Milan.
A smile is the first reaction seeing his works, but then a thought comes into the mind and there it flows messing all the ideas. You can’t get if that work is a joke or an undeniable truth for human existence.
Usually his masterpieces refer to Death and drama, never in a grotesque framework and this gave him the award for carefree artist and most of the time he causes scandals and criticals against him and his works.
All of his works of art are simple and complacated at the same time, you can hate them or love them, you get at a first sight their meaning but then suddently you understand there are other meanings to find. Cattelan doesn’t follow the rules, he didn’t attend any Art Academy school, he is a self-taught man. He has fun of art’s world, crtitics men, gallerists, museums and most of all spectators. Who looks is involved in a images and references game that don’t take only to a single point of view, but to different kind of definitions. Int his way spectators beacome part of the creative process of the creator artist, cooperating to build up the meaning of the art work.
Usually his masterpieces refer to Death and drama, never in a grotesque framework and this gave him the award for carefree artist and most of the time he causes scandals and criticals against him and his works.
All of his works of art are simple and complacated at the same time, you can hate them or love them, you get at a first sight their meaning but then suddently you understand there are other meanings to find. Cattelan doesn’t follow the rules, he didn’t attend any Art Academy school, he is a self-taught man. He has fun of art’s world, crtitics men, gallerists, museums and most of all spectators. Who looks is involved in a images and references game that don’t take only to a single point of view, but to different kind of definitions. Int his way spectators beacome part of the creative process of the creator artist, cooperating to build up the meaning of the art work.