Maurizio Cattelan: genius or joker?
He is stepping down from the art world the day his Guggenheim show opens. But is it just another prank?
By Franco Fanelli. From Features, Issue 229, November 2011
Published online: 02 November 2011
One of Italy’s most controversial and talked about contemporary artists is due to announce his retirement on 4 November to coincide with the launch of his retrospective at the Guggenheim in New York—the first (and last, according to the artist) to bring together his entire oeuvre (until 22 January 2012). But is Maurizio Cattelan actually going to retire or is it just another of his publicity stunts? And if it is true, does he deserve the attention that always seems to surround him?
The Art Newspaper: Is it true that...?
Maurizio Cattelan: It’s completely true, I can confirm it.
Sorry, confirm what?
Oh, I don’t know. You tell me.
Is it true that the retrospective at the Guggenheim will conclude your career as an artist?
This will be my first and last retrospective, at least in the sense of an exhibition that I have personally had a hand in. The “Cattelan Archive” will be taking over after that. There are already more [projects] in the pipeline, but I won’t be directly involved. I will just pretend that I’m dead.
How is the exhibition organised?
There are about 130 works from museums and private collections. I believe the first one dates back to 1989-90, when I started out. There aren’t any earlier works. Or rather, there are a few design objects, but I don’t consider them works. The last one is a scaled-down version of the Piazza Affari installation in Milan [LOVE, 2010].
