Maurizio Cattelan Awarded 2026 Preis der Nationalgalerie with Solo Exhibition at Neue Nationalgalerie

Maurizio Cattelan has been selected as the recipient of the 2026 Preis der Nationalgalerie. The Italian artist, born in Padua, will present a solo exhibition at Berlin's Neue Nationalgalerie opening in September 2026. His practice employs shock, humor, and moral ambiguity to interrogate themes of guilt, responsibility, power, and collective trauma. Notable works include La Nona Ora (1999), depicting Pope John Paul II struck by a meteorite; Him (2001), featuring a kneeling child with Adolf Hitler's face; and Comedian (2019), a banana duct-taped to a wall. The jury, comprising Emma Lavigne (director of the Pinault Collection, Paris), Sam Keller (director of the Fondation Beyeler, Basel), and Klaus Biesenbach (director of the Neue Nationalgalerie), emphasized Cattelan's engagement with enduring concerns like power, religion, death, humor, and memory. They noted these themes resonate powerfully in Berlin, a city deeply marked by complex historical narratives. As an Italian artist with an international career, Cattelan brings a distinctly European perspective to questions of identity, responsibility, and collective remembrance. His works provoke critical and poetic confrontations with history.