LONDON.- The Institute of Contemporary Arts announced the unveiling of a newly commissioned permanently sited work by Rirkrit Tiravanija, untitled 2019 (the form of the flower is unknown to the seed) on 6 June 2019.

The work occupies the alcove in the common area of the ICA, between the Lower Gallery and the Theatre, transforming it into a new social space comprising a sake bar, seating and tables crafted in Tiravanija’s studio in Chiang Mai, set within a painted sunrise and sunset. This new work marks Tiravanija’s return to the ICA, following his participation in the landmark exhibition Real Time in 1993.

Rirkrit Tiravanija’s untitled 2019 (the form of the flower is unknown to the seed) is presented in collaboration with TBA21, Thyssen-Bornemisza Art Contemporary, with special thanks to Francesca Thyssen-Bornemisza.

Rirkrit Tiravanija, born in Thailand and living between New York, Berlin and Chiang Mai, is known for a practice that traverses sculpture, film, installation, public and private performances, teaching, and forms of public service and social action. Recognised as one of the most influential artists of his generation, he routinely overturns traditional exhibition formats in favour of social interactions through the sharing of everyday activities such as cooking, eating and reading. Creating environments that reject the primacy of the art object and instead focusing on bringing people together through simple acts of communal care, Tiravanija’s work challenges expectations around labour and virtuosity. As platforms for these encounters, he designs architectural structures and interventions, presented in both institutions and public contexts.

untitled 2019 (the form of the flower is unknown to the seed) is the first permanently sited work by Tiravanija in London. It is available to visit on an ongoing basis from 7 June 2019.

Stefan Kalmár says: ‘Quoting one of the ICA’s founders Herbert Read in its title, this new work is a celebration of both the ICA’s legacy and its current role in contemporary society. It is not by chance that at the heart of the ICA – both physically and metaphorically – is always the shared aspiration to create common social space and consider how we interact with each other, from 1947 until today.’