A biography for Maurizio Cattelanhasn’t been written yet.
“What's the point of our life? Everything seems absurd until we die, and then it makes sense.”
“I never talk about my work as a joke.”
“It's not my job to tell people what a work means.”
“If you are a plumber, there is an objective way to establish whether you put together a great piping system or not. Art is a bit more slippery than that.”
“I have become an employee of art.”
“There are times when being scandalous or provocative can help bring focus to issues of major concern.”
“I produce so little that the works have to be editioned. Otherwise, I don't survive. Also, editioning is relevant for communication. If you make three new works, it means that nine objects are available. Three people talking about your work is fine, but nine makes a difference.”
“Sometimes I see myself as a locked box - very detached from myself and others. But I feel lucky, because I am the owner of my time, and you cannot buy time.”
“I get up in the morning and get to bed at night, and between, I bring equivalent dedication to everything I do, with a horror of the inaccurate and the half-baked.”
“I was jealous of colleagues when I should have been happy for them. I decided to save my energy. If you think they are great works, you should buy them.”