Paolo Canevari

Working across multiple mediums, from sculpture and installation to drawing and video, Paolo Canevari creates works that are both simply executed and intricately conceived. His performance Colosso (2004) featured the artist carrying a model sculpture of the Colosseum on his shoulders, alluding to the weight of the Italian artistic tradition that he must bear. In Canevari's video Bouncing Skull (2007), a human skull is treated as a soccer ball, becoming a living memento mori integrated into the banalities of youth. Speaking on his oeuvre, the artist states, “Life and death have been a source of inspiration for centuries for artists. I’m not an exception.” Canevari's works have been included in the Venice Biennale and the Whitney Biennial and are exhibited at numerous public and private institutions, including the Museum of Contemporary Art in Hong Kong, the Museum of Contemporary Art in Rome, and the Museum of Modern Art.