Maurizio Cattelan Dives into the Vivid World of Color Photography at His Roman Showcase

“Color is nonsense,” the iconic photographer Henri Cartier-Bresson once expressed to his junior peer, William Eggleston. Slightly less crude yet similarly scornful, Ansel Adams compared shooting in color (despite his significant output in that realm) to playing a piano that was out of tune, asserting that he could capture “a far superior sense of ‘color’ through a meticulously planned and executed black-and-white photograph than [he had] ever realized with color photography.”

In fact, color photography faced significant challenges since its inception in the mid-19th century, with critics and enthusiasts labeling its alluring hues as garish compared to the purportedly more refined black and white. However, perceptions have evolved, and color photography is now broadly embraced across fine art, fashion, journalism, and many other domains.

Currently, multifaceted artist Maurizio Cattelan, in collaboration with Sam Stourdzé, director of the French Academy in Rome – Villa Médicis, has curated an exhibition focused on color photography. This event is hosted at the Renaissance villa located just a stone’s throw from the iconic Spanish Steps in the center of the Italian capital, once the abode of Cardinal Ferdinando I de’ Medici and the Academy’s home since 1803.

The exhibition showcases the creations of approximately 20 artists, segmented into what the curators have designated as “chapters,” featuring titles such as Early Birds, Raining Cats and Dogs, Femme Fatale, and Stranger Things. Featured artists include Miles Aldridge, Erwin Blumenfeld, Guy Bourdin, Juno Calypso, Walter Chandoha, Harold Edgerton, Hassan Hajjaj, Hiro, Ouka Leele, Yevonde Middleton, Arnold Odermatt, Ruth Ossai, Martin Parr, Pierre et Gilles, Alex Prager, Adrienne Raquel, Sandy Skoglund, Toiletpaper (the magazine launched by Cattelan and Pierpaolo Ferrari), and William Wegman.

“What if color could rescue us?” asked Stourdzé in a correspondence. “In a monochromatic world where the clouds appear to be accumulating, this exhibition welcomes you to a chromotherapy experience featuring lemon yellow, infinite blue, vibrant red, and cheerful orange.”

Animals frequently serve as subjects. Wegman is particularly recognized for his images of his Weimaraners in various positions, sometimes dressed in human attire. Chandoha, on the other hand, has gained fame as a cat photographer; out of his extensive archive of over 225,000 images, around 90,000 portray felines. “Cats are my preferred subject,” he stated, “due to their boundless variety of demeanor, stance, expression, and color.” One endearing image showcases a furry creature sitting atop three stacked cushions; another captures a quartet in a tender embrace.

Food also receives thorough examination, as highlighted in Martin Paar’s Common Sense [Donut, Ramsgate] (1999), a charming image of a child’s hands, emerging from vibrant red jacket cuffs, clutching a sweet delicacy, along with Juno Calypso’s Chicken Dogs (2015), depicting a model mysteriously lying face down on a tiled floor adjacent to an open can of the mentioned food, with one dog cautiously peeking out above the edge. 

Unable to attend the exhibition? Villa Medici will release a 224-page volume in collaboration with Damiani, priced at €55, which will be available in U.K. bookshops in March for £50 ($61) and in the U.S. in May at $60. 

“Chromotherapia: The Feel-Good Color Photography” will be exhibited at the French Academy in Rome – Villa Médicis, Viale della Trinità dei Monti, 1, from February 28 to June 9.