Bizarre or trending subjects, catch a break with our curiosity of the week. Cooker extraordinaire, Lor-K concocts meals as mouthwatering as indigestible. In EAT ME, the artist reveals her (open) secrets to turn bulky wastes into appetizing dishes.
Although street art has been popularised since the end of last century, it – usually – limits itself to graffiti. Yet, Lor-K, a plastic artist based in Paris, has launched a daring revolution: urban sculpting. Using old mattresses left on pavements, the artist creates gigantic food: sushi, pizzas, waffles, pies… Her book of bizarre recipes, EAT ME, gathers her creative process, as well as the productions she left everywhere in the Paris region.
“The growing presence of mattresses on the street caught my attention. They can either be a symbol of life or death. A mattress witnesses the most intimate moments of our lives. Personal and essential at home, it becomes a repulsive nuisance outside”, Lor-K tells us. The street gave the artist her raw material. After being transformed, the mattresses are left on location – to surprise passers-by. Shen then exhibits in more conventional places her oversized and colourful pieces. A nice way to resist the ephemeral dimension of street art – and she photographs the whole process. “Photography is systematic, it is part of my plastic practice, just like sculpture”.
Urban gastronomy
“Tracing and cutting tomatoes and onions in the foam. Slicing the tomatoes so their width is proportional to the bred, spray-painting the heart a lighter colour than the skin to give it the appearance of a ripe fruit”,
and you’ll get the perfect vegetables for a kebab! The book of recipe guides you through 30 main-courses and deserts. The cooking times, difficulty levels and necessary ingredients are all included in EAT ME. Do you wish to perfect your urban cuisine techniques? The detailed explanations – from putting on a spit to crumbling, stuffing or even tying up will help you. Swap your salad bowls, whips, spoons and other utensils for seesaw and cutters. And don’t forget the main ingredient to any good street meals: aerosol paint. “Around ten of them are used for each recipe”, Lor-K tells us.
“I’ve picked the popular street food of big cities as a reflection on our global gastronomy. Food is a universal language – and we eat our own shit to exist”, says Lor-K, who marked out her field of action. To her, the transformation of destitute objects into gourmet and delicious recipes is a good paradox. The project highlights the place of street art in art history, while criticizing our eating habits and the amount of abandoned waste. Urban actions opening up – in spite of everything – our appetite.
EAT ME – Recettes urbaines, Lor-K, Pyramid editions, €24.90.
© Lor-K
