Food, Drink, Art and starving artists have been around together for a long time. I recently saw a carving of a bison in a Neanderthal cave and all the commentary was about the beauty and being an early form of art, demonstrating the human’s desire to create. Or some such stuff. Bollocks. It was a menu. Fire cooked Bison. Get ‘em while they’re hot. They’re lovely. 

So, a core thing about Videoart at Midnight Artists ’Cookbook is that every single recipe is a menu and the artist is on it. Stick a fork in them and see if they’re done.

Have you ever watched Douglas Gordon cook? Do you know Harun Farocki’s favourite dal? Would you like to eat straight from the pot with Keren Cytter or recreate Agnieszka Polska’s pirogi with trumpets of death? What?

Ming Wong’s ‘Berliner Brei’ (congee with canned fish) for example, is just “survival food” for this video artist who is probably too busy editing to shop, cook or wash up. Each has their own interpretation of food and the perspective it brings to us of the artist chef.

Curated by Olaf Stüber and his son Anton, 80 of the most renowned video artists of today show off their favourite recipes to cook at home. Some are simple, others not, but all have a story. Sometimes it is a short burp, sometimes a longer rumbling growl and sometimes just an anecdote or just a photo.

“Encounters with art, whether when viewing individual works, curating and installing exhibitions or in conversations with other art enthusiasts, always mean exchange, food for thought, reorientation, and regularly also departing from safe terrain,' says Olaf Stüber.

“Sharing a meal played a central role in many of these encounters.”

“We would dine until the wee hours, tables bending, and sometimes a collector would buy something in the middle of the night. But I also enjoy being cooked for and being surprised by artists with their creations from the stove. Friendships have developed in this way and often long-term collaborations, too. And last but not least, we all know and enjoy it: sitting together with friends at a long table in the evening after an exhibition opening, after a day at the Venice Biennale or Art Basel, exchanging views on what we have seen, planning new things or simply celebrating art and life.”

OK Olaf, so serve me.

Image: Douglas Gordon © Anrton Stüber, KERBER.