Lorenzo Mattotti - The New Yorker - Night Life, 2000

Lot description

wax crayons on thin cardboard 33 x 48 cm Original cover made by Mattotti for the weekly magazine The New Yorker of April 10, 2000. The most important achievement for any visual artist of the twentieth century is certainly to see one of their works on the cover of the American weekly magazine The New Yorker. Since 1993, Mattotti has had this privilege on more than thirty occasions, making him one of the most loved and acclaimed contemporary illustrators. The covers of The New Yorker represent a unique case in contemporary printing, since they express the artist's thoughts independently of the contents of the internal pages. Thanks to these works of art capable of telling stories, often funny but sometimes serious, bizarre or controversial, entire generations of readers have kept issues of The New Yorker for weeks, months and even years. The covers of the magazine decorate the walls of many homes and are re-proposed as highly successful prints. They are ageless, yet they portray a precise moment. They comment on the passing of the years. They document radical shifts in opinion on issues such as homosexuality and the figure of women, while gently mocking our infatuations. They illustrate the culture of the upper classes and trends in fashion, from Brooklyn to Paris to Milan. A breathtaking journey through the material and enveloping colors typical of Mattotti, which give brightness and depth to the scenes, demonstrating the artist's versatility and his formidable talent in finding innovative solutions for a wide variety of themes. A museum piece. Signed.