Hand signed by the artist, First Edition, Perfect Condition
Published by River Books, Bangkok · Hardcover · 24 x 17 cm · 192 pp. ·400 color illus. · english
This book accompanies the exhibition titled 'Rirkrit Tiravanija: Just Smile and Don't Talk' at Kunsthalle Bielefeld from July to October 2010. Containing a collection of 23 recipes, demonstrating the making of meals ranging from Pad Thai to Flaming Morning Glory, the book documents not only artist Rirkrit Tiravanija's cooking in his Chiang Mai kitchen, but also his art through the stove.
Thomas Kellein noted in his essay, 'as is suggested by the title, "Just Smile and Don't Talk", the Cook Book, with photos by Antoientte Aurell, is a kind of mischievous, but otherwise practical breviary. You can both see the artistic retrospective, and then, if you want, cook it yourself. [...] [Rirkrit Tiravanija's cooking] arouses an easily ignored, primordial, yet ubiquitous culture, linked to individual and collective memory and desire. Tiravanija's meals awaken our innate cultural abilities to taste and smell; and, whether we like it or not, cooking, eating, and drinking trigger social interactions. The social aspect - let's call it the individual experience of contingency - is at the forefront of his work. The food is not always eaten.' Rirkrit Tiravanija has often embedded sharing meals, cooking, reading or playing music, living and socialising in previous performances and installations.