SUMMER – an exhibition by Søren Aagaard
Ramson picked by hand, invasive oysters and an apocalyptic food truck. Artist and chef Søren Aagaard tears into contemporary cuisine in a new exhibition at the Museum of Contemporary Art.
ART, FOOD AND SOCIETY
Food and drink has always inspired art – from Dutch still lifes to Warhol’s cans of Campbell's Soup. The way we depict food in art says something about the society in which we live. Søren Aagaard’s works delve straight into the dilemmas and narratives of contemporary food culture. Taking food as his subject matter and material, Aagaard brings a range of discussions about climate, authenticity and modes of production into the realm of art – a space where we can see the dreams, hopes, (im)balances of power and stereotypes that our food reflects.
A BITE OF THE APPLE
In his work Hawwāh, Søren Aaggaard points out that our food culture may prove our downfall. The work depicts an apocalyptic food truck that still remains after earth has been flooded due to climate change. Hawwāh is the Hebrew name for Eve, who, according to the myth of the Fall, was tempted and ate the forbidden apple.
Food trucks have become very popular these days. Carrying food from all over the world, these small carts satisfy our desire for exotic food and authentic flavours. Such consumption habits reflect the challenges of our time and our difficulties in bringing about the transformations we know are necessary. On the one hand, we would like to do something good for the climate, but we also want to visit remote places and eat the best of the best.
ABOUT THE EXHIBITION
The title, SUMMER, evokes thoughts of sun-drenched holidays and lush countryside. But in the summer of 2018 we saw another aspect of warm weather: scorched lawns, bad harvests and troubled thoughts about climate change. Such duality is at the core of this presentation.
The central installation is simultaneously a work of art and a fully functional teaching kitchen. The kitchen includes tables, shelves, washbasins and white plates – and all the furniture was designed and built by Aagaard himself. The installation also includes a number of works made out of locally sourced raw materials such as radishes and wild garlic. Another room features video works. The displays include an interview with food blogger Mary Scherpe speaking about how the idea of local, authentic flavours, such as New Nordic Cuisine, can quickly be subsumed into a right-wing, nationalist agenda.
CHEFS AND ARTISTS
With subtle, understated humour, Søren Aagaard plays around with the cliché and cult of celebrity chefs. Claus Meyer, Rene Redzepi and Jamie Oliver grace the covers of fashion magazines, and the entertainment industry presents chefs as geniuses. An approach familiar from the world of art, where artists have traditionally been represented as brilliant, heroic loners who march to their own drum and discover new insights.
THREE EVENTS
We invite all those interested to attend artist talks and cookery classes on 19.6, 21.8 and 28.8 from 17.00 – 20.00
Wednesday 19 June 2019 17.00 – 20.00
Local and Authentic
A cookery class on fermentation
Host/guest: Søren Aagaard and Anna Østergaard Laursen from Edible
Wednesday 21 August 2019 17.00 – 20.00
Aesthetics and Extravagance
A cookery class on oysters
Host/guest: Søren Aagaard and food critic Lars Bjerregaard
Wednesday 28 August 2019 17.00 – 20.00
Preservation and the Future
A cookery class on pickling and preserving
Host/guest: Søren Aagaard and Simon Weber Marcussen from Dansk Tang
Attending a class costs DKK 150 plus a fee. The price includes admission to the museum and samples for the participants to take home.
FOR CHILDREN
Children and their parents can take a tour of the exhibition with a so-called ‘sense box’ centred on the theme of the food of the future. The museum has also built a small kitchen where our youngest guests can paint their favourite dishes onto biodegradable disposable plates.
ROSKILDE FESTIVAL
The exhibition includes a site-specific sculpture at the 2019 Roskilde Festival 2019. There is plenty of street food at this year’s Roskilde Festival, but keep your eyes peeled: somewhere in the festival site you will find Søren Aagaards land art-sculpture Hawwāh: a rusty street-food truck half submerged into the gravel. Painted and battered, with a molten plastic interior and large heaps of seaweed, the cart looks like it has survived the apocalypse.
Vernissage Wednesday May 22, 17-19
About Søren Aagaard
Søren Aagaard (b. 1980, DK) is a trained chef and artist who works with video, sculpture, performance and installation art. Especially food and the meal as a temporally and performative event is an important part of Aagards practice.
Through his interest in specific produce and cultural, sociological and culinary history of different places, Aagaard speaks about phenomenons of our time such as climate change and the worship of the nostalgia and the genius in the art world and the culinary world.
Aagaard is educated from The Royal Danish Academy of Art in 2013 and has also studied at Malmö Art Academy. He has exhibited in Denmark and abroad and participated at several international film festivals.
Events
