STRANGE CREATURES THAT YOU KNOW
The first work I saw of Maurizio Cattelan (1960-) was this.
I don’t remember which museum I was in. I think it was Beaubourg but can’t be certain. It’s a very long time ago. From the back, I thought it was a child kneeling and then I saw « Him » - yes it is definitely him with his distinctive moustache. Adolf Hitler looks more like a child with the body of a 10 year old and the head of an adult. Should I smile? Laugh? Or cry? There is no answer, but this time I knew what I was seeing. Who is this man? Maurizio Catelan. Firstly, the exhibition is called « Not Afraid of Love ». Why that? He closed himself off from the public for five years of early retirement struggling to avoid too many appearances. Not something that most artists would do. He has now come back to reveal himself. A lot of the work I knew already but in the Musée de la Monnaie with such fabulous space, it comes very much alive, to the extent that you look at a work twice if not three times, to make sure it’s