Hitler, horses and pigeons: Maurizio Cattelan explores power and darkness in Berlin exhibition
Italian artist Maurizio Cattelan has brought his provocative and often unsettling work to Berlin for his first major solo exhibition in Germany exploring power, violence, death, faith and uncertainty.
The Neue Nationalgalerie in Berlin transforms into a gallery of unsettling images and surprising combinations, featuring several of Maurizio Cattelan's most iconic works alongside newer pieces. Among the most striking is "Him," a 2001 sculpture of Adolf Hitler kneeling as if in prayer, which appears innocent at first glance but reveals the dictator's face upon closer inspection. Created over two decades ago and sold for €15 million at auction in 2016, "Him" remains relevant today.
Cattelan's playful and provocative pieces leave the meaning of the figure ambiguous, shaking viewers but not providing certainty. "Purgatory" presents a miniature version of Berlin's Brandenburg Gate, with hundreds of stuffed pigeons perched above visitors' heads in "People." "Novecento" shows an exhausted horse suspended from the ceiling, symbolizing the power and eventual downfall of the 20th century.
Outside the museum, a mechanical boy beats a drum on the roof in "Never," a warning or call to wake up inspired by Günter Grass' novel "The Tin Drum."
Cattelan's works challenge conventional ideas about art, value, and taste, including his best-known pieces like "Comedian," a banana duct-taped to a wall sold for €5.2 million in 2024, and his gold toilet, "America," stolen from Blenheim Palace in 2019. "Night" adopts a darker, more contemplative tone, using the title to signify reflection and the promise of a new dawn. The exhibition, which runs until March 2027, explores power, darkness, and the complexities of human existence.
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