In 1979, Maurizio Cattelan came to Germany for the first time. He was nineteen, broke, and didn’t speak a word of German. Drawn by the promise of prosperity in the 70s, he set off across the country on a motorcycle, long before he created his first work of art. Today, his works can be found not only in museums around the world; his name also continues making headlines. Cattelan is not only Italy’s most famous living artist, but arguably the art world’s most charming trickster. At the Guggenheim, he installed a toilet made of solid gold, tellingly titled “America”, which was stolen shortly afterwards. His banana, casually duct-taped to a wall, recently sold at auction to a crypto billionaire for 6.2 million dollars.
This autumn, Berlin is his playground. At first, there was some surprise that the 64-year-old — who is no stranger to the spotlight — would receive the Nationalgalerie Prize, an honor traditionally awarded to emerging talents. But this year, the prize has been given a new direction. It now supports artists with a close connection to Berlin. And who, if not Cattelan, could be more fitting?
It’s hard to believe that this is, in fact, his first-ever solo exhibition in Germany. After all, he has been a fixture of Berlin’s cultural scene for years. His connection to the city dates back to the 2006 Berlin Biennale, which he co-curated. But many of his works touch a nerve in Germany’s collective memory, among them the 2001 sculpture “Him”, which depicts Adolf Hitler as a kneeling boy at prayer.
In dialogue with Mies van der Rohe’s architecture and the history of the Neue Nationalgalerie, Cattelan has developed new works over the past few months. Some of his best-known pieces — such as Novecento, a horse suspended from the ceiling — seem to belong in the space, as though they had been created especially for it. A master of the grand gesture, Cattelan places his sculptures in these hallowed halls like exclamation marks. In a city well practiced in remembrance and quiet reckoning, he achieves something few artists manage: he draws his audience out of its shell.
For this autumn’s art season, he has set his sights on one of Berlin’s most recognizable landmarks (if not one of Germany’s): the Brandenburg Gate. Recreated as a wooden miniature and titled “Purgatory”, it forms the entrance to his exhibition. You pass beneath its arch and hope to arrive in heaven. Even if paradise will have to wait a little longer, one thing is clear, with Cattelan as the gatekeeper, there is plenty to laugh about in purgatory.
Text: Laura Storfner / Credits: Maurizio Cattelan, Him, 2021, Foto: Attilio Maranzano; Novecento, 1997, Castello di Rivoli, Torino, Foto: Paolo Pellion di Persano; Neue Nationalgalerie, Foto: Ivan Erofeev
Neue Nationalgalerie, Potsdamer Str.50, 10785 Berlin–Tiergarten; map
Maurizio Cattelan: “NIGHT – Preis der Nationalgalerie 2026” 10.09.2026–07.03.2027
Opening 09.09.2026 from 21h
@neuenationalgalerie
@mauriziocattelan
