The Ballad Of Trotsky
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The Ballad Of Trotsky is a dead taxidermised horse,[1] a statue resembling a horse,[2] and a 1996 conceptual art piece by Italian artist Maurizio Cattelan.[3]
Dead horse
[edit]A taxidermised horse is aligned to the ceiling of an institutional space.[1][3]
Statue (horse)
[edit]The statue of a horse is installed in an art gallery.[2][3]
Conceptual art piece
[edit]This taxidermised horse is a statue referring to Russian revolutionary Leon Trotsky - an influential figure in the Bolshevik Revolution and the Soviet Union, that, thanks to his opposing of Stalin in the 1920s, had to flee to Mexico City; where he consequently was murdered by a devout communist.[1][2][3]
Interpretation
[edit]Julien Delagrange has viewed the concept to represent a tragedy which aligns with the fate of Trotsky - presented by the work is one of thwarted potential and having to bear witness to the loss of an ideal - Trotsky represents utopia and persistent efforts to achieve a better world, but also a failure, representing the tragi-comic predicament of the human condition as a whole.[1][4]
References
[edit]- ^ a b c d "Flogging a dead horse". The Guardian. 28 June 2001. Retrieved 29 September 2023.
- ^ a b c "These are all of Maurizio Cattelan's Horse sculptures". Public Delivery. Retrieved 29 September 2023.
- ^ a b c d "MAURIZIO CATTELAN". Perrotin. Retrieved 29 September 2023.
- ^ "Maurizio Cattelan: The Ballad of Trotsky, 1996". Contemporary Art Issue. 6 June 2022. Retrieved 30 September 2023.