Wim Delvoye on Manzoni: 'I took what I needed, then went my own way'
Belgian artist Wim Delvoye (b. 1965) clarifies his relationship with Piero Manzoni, whose work he is often compared to due to shared themes of human excrement and a Dadaist, provocative approach. In a video interview with Artribune, Delvoye acknowledges Manzoni's importance in his formation but stresses a fundamental difference: Manzoni declared his own bodily products art by virtue of being an artist, whereas Delvoye's Cloaca installation is a bio-engineering machine that reproduces human digestion, reflecting on what it means to be human today. The interview was published in 2018.
Key facts
- Wim Delvoye was born in 1965.
- Delvoye is often compared to Piero Manzoni.
- Delvoye's Cloaca is a large installation that transforms food into feces.
- Manzoni used his own breath and feces as art.
- Delvoye describes Cloaca as a bio-engineering machine.
- The interview was published by Artribune in 2018.
- Delvoye says he took what he needed from Manzoni's work.
- Cloaca reproduces the behavior of a human being.
Entities
Artists
- Wim Delvoye
- Piero Manzoni
Institutions
- Artribune