Bon Appetit 2018

Editor: We're looking at "Bon Appetit," an oil painting by Babak-Matveev from 2018. My first impression is of a sort of deliberately jarring composition. What strikes you most about the painting? Curator: The conspicuousness of the materials used, oil paint depicting flesh and food, alongside ready-made signifiers such as the instant noodle packaging. The painting's existence hinges on these elements and their socio-economic implications, does it not? Editor: Could you elaborate on those implications? Curator: Consider the labor involved – from the harvesting of the oil for the paint to the production of those noodles. There’s a visible disconnect between the affluence implied by the cityscape and the relatively cheap, mass-produced meal he's consuming. Editor: That makes sense. So you see it as a commentary on consumerism? Curator: In part, but more broadly, it draws attention to the means of production and distribution. We see both the artifice of high art—oil paint imitating life—and the artifice of instant gratification embodied by the noodles. They are both constructs dependent on extensive networks of labor. How do you interpret the blatant display of the figure's body? Editor: Perhaps as another form of consumption, a sort of… visual feast mirroring the act of eating? Curator: Precisely. And where does that put the viewer in relation to the means of making, displaying and observing such an image? Editor: So, in understanding this painting, it's important to look beyond the surface representation and consider its material reality and its connection to larger systems. I never thought of it that way before! Curator: It’s about uncovering the often-invisible processes and relationships that give rise to what we see. We can learn much when we look at all those ingredients as active signifiers.