Rirkrit Tiravanija: A Lot of People

Book Synopsis: Four decades of participatory art, films, sculpture and more from the iconic Relational Aesthetics pioneer.

Accompanying the first US survey and largest exhibition to date dedicated to Thai artist Rirkrit Tiravanija, Rirkrit Tiravanija: A LOT OF PEOPLE traces four decades of Tiravanija’s multifaceted practice. Spanning rarely seen early works from the 1980s through recent projects, the publication covers Tiravanija’s experimentations with installation, film, works on paper, ephemera, sculpture and participatory works. Designed by Tiffany Malakooti, the publication features over 400 images—many of which are published for the first time—as well as 23 newly commissioned texts. Longform essays by exhibition curators Ruba Katrib and Yasmil Raymond, as well as scholars Jörn Schafaff, David Teh and Mi You, dive into key aspects of Tiravanija’s work, providing historical context. These texts are complemented by 18 short reflections from artists, thinkers and collaborators who have been key interlocutors with Tiravanija over the years.

Rirkrit Tiravanija (born 1961) is a Thai contemporary artist residing in New York, Berlin and Chiang Mai, Thailand. Recent solo exhibitions include the Hirshhorn Museum (2019); the National Gallery Singapore (2018); Stedelijk Museum, Amsterdam (2016); the Kunsthalle Bielefeld (2010); the Kunsthalle Fridericianum, Kassel (2009); the Musée d’Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris; the Guggenheim Museum, New York; the Serpentine Gallery, London (all 2005); and the Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen, Rotterdam (2004). Tiravanija has been on the faculty of the School of Visual Arts at Columbia University since 2000. He is the cofounder of the Land Foundation, located in Chiang Mai, Thailand, and a member of Bangkok’s alternative space and magazine VER.