The Travelers

Bruno Catalano

Bruno Catalano’s hyperrealistic bronze sculptures depict travelers from all walks of life, their bodies hollowed out and fragmented as if slowly disappearing. These life-size figures, each one carrying luggage, are often shown as public artworks. Catalano established himself after his series “Les Voyageurs” was permanently installed around Marseille in 2013 to help mark the city’s designation as a European Capital of Culture. In 2019, almost 30 such sculptures were exhibited in various sites across Venice as part of the Venice Biennale. Initially working with clay, Catalano began creating bronze figures with fractured bodies after a studio accident left a hole in the stomach of one of his sculptures. He sometimes paints his bronze figures and makes others in marble as he continues to explore themes around migration, borders, home, and memory.