Maurizio Catalan – Him.
A 2001 sculpture of a kneeling Hitler made a world record auction price for Maurizio Catalan at Christie’s in New York. Entitled Him and composed of wax, human hair, suit, polyester resin and pigment it sold for $17,189,000. It was the top lot at Christie’s Bound to Fail evening sale on May 8. The auction brought in $78,123,250 with sell-through rates of 97% by lot and 98% by value. The sale established seven new world auction records for artists including Paola Pivi, Neil Jenney, Olivier Mosset, Daniel Buren, Rebecca Horn, John Armleder, Maurizio Cattelan. Records were also set for a sculpture by Richard Prince and a video by Bruce Nauman.
Loic Gouzer, Deputy Chairman, Post-War and Contemporary Art, remarked: “With Bound to Fail, we sought to push the envelope with an auction that emphasized artists and works that challenge the traditional notions of commercial success. The auction’s strong outcome was the result of enthusiastic bidding from a diverse group of collectors from all over the world. We were encouraged by the passionate response to works that have traditionally been overlooked or construed as challenging. Maurizio Cattelan’s, Him, set a world auction record for the artist when it sold for $17,189,000 after over five minutes of bidding. The depth of interest for this work speaks to its international notoriety, and its ability to breach the boundaries of fine art and popular culture, forcing the viewer to reconsider challenging questions about action and absolution”.
