Maurizio Cattelan discusses his Berlin exhibition and controversial works
Maurizio Cattelan is preparing a major new exhibition at Berlin’s Neue Nationalgalerie, where he discussed the ideas behind works that have made him one of the art world’s most recognisable figures. His best-known pieces include a golden toilet, a duct-taped banana that sold for $6.2 million, and works involving Hitler and a pope.
Maurizio Cattelan is preparing a major new show at Berlin’s Neue Nationalgalerie, the Mies van der Rohe-designed museum. In an interview, the Italian sculptor discussed work that has attracted attention through theft, destruction, controversy and high prices.
Cattelan is known for Comedian, a banana duct-taped to a wall in 2019. The work was sold for $6.2m, and its buyer later ate the banana.
He has also created a golden toilet that was stolen, as well as works involving Hitler and a pope. Cattelan said his work should not be understood only as prank or provocation, describing it as addressing villains, imposters and straw men.
THE QUESTIONS THIS EVENT LEAVES BEHIND
What conditions shape the value of works that are designed to invite controversy?
Who has the power to decide whether an artwork is read as satire, provocation or serious criticism?
What changes when a work can be eaten, stolen or otherwise altered by its audience?
How might the Berlin exhibition affect interpretations of Cattelan’s earlier works?
What assumptions about art markets does the sale of Comedian leave unexamined?
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GLOBAL CURIOSITY MAP · AUGUST 2026