A version of Tiravanija’s contribution to the 1995 Walker exhibition Economies: Hans Accola and Rirkrit Tiravanija, this section recreates the “meditation area,” which was painted orange to refer to Buddhist monks' robes. The blankets–made at Faribault Woolen Mill in Faribault, Minnesota–point to the world outside the museum and to an aspect of our local economy. A light sculpture by Dan Flavin functions not as art but merely as a light fixture, asking us to reconsider the art status of these fluorescent tubes. Tiravanija’s installations, always participatory in nature, invite people to experience art in a way that goes beyond passively looking at paintings on walls or sculptures on pedestals. Viewers are encouraged to use the elements that make up environments–in this case, to stretch out on a cot and relax.
Copyright 1998 Walker Art Center