Rirkrit Tiravanija - A LOT OF PEOPLE

October 12, 2023–March 4, 2024

Rirkrit Tiravanija
A LOT OF PEOPLE

From the start of his practice, a critical material for Rirkrit Tiravanija (Thai, b. 1961) has been the presence of “a lot of people”—a purposefully broad and expansive term that stands as an open invitation to everyone and anyone, present and future. His largest exhibition to date, Rirkrit Tiravanija: A LOT OF PEOPLE traces four decades of the artist’s career and features over 100 works, from early experimentations with installation and film, to works on paper, photographs, ephemera, sculptures, and newly produced “plays” of key participatory pieces. Extending across our second-floor galleries, lobby, and Courtyard, the exhibition includes rarely seen early works that address his experiences as an immigrant with a palpable sense of “otherness” in a Western-centric art world, alongside more recent series that tackle global politics and the quotidian news cycle. Critical to the evolution of recent art in New York City and worldwide, Tiravanija’s interdisciplinary practice has been transnational in scope, engaging notions of cultural difference, interrogating the parameters of place, and negotiating how people can come together.

Central to the exhibition is a newly conceived presentation of five historical interactive pieces, presented on a stage as a series of plays. Tiravanija describes the ongoing evolution of his works: “Like a good recipe, everyone knows what it is, what it tastes like and even how to make it again—perhaps even differently, following their own interpretation; or perhaps it would be a base for something completely different, a possibility.”

Presented on Fridays and Saturdays, the following five plays unfold chronologically over the course of the exhibition. Come back each month to experience a new artwork.

Rirkrit Tiravanija: A LOT OF PEOPLE is organized by Ruba Katrib, Curator and Director of Curatorial Affairs, MoMA PS1, and Yasmil Raymond, guest curator, with Jody Graf and Kari Rittenbach, Assistant Curators, MoMA PS1. Sponsors

Major support for Rirkrit Tiravanija: A LOT OF PEOPLE is provided by Maja Hoffmann / Luma Foundation, the Family of Lise Stolt-Nielsen, the Contemporary Arts Council of The Museum of Modern Art, and the International Council of The Museum of Modern Art.

Generous support is provided by Glenstone Foundation and Ellen and Michael Ringier.

Additional support is provided by Steven and Alexandra Cohen, Martin and Rebecca Eisenberg, and Craig Robins and Jackie Soffer. Funding is also provided by Eileen and Michael Cohen and Laura Steinberg and Bernardo Nadal-Ginard.

Special thanks to Artek and Jungly Restaurant.

Tiravanija’s exhibition at MoMA PS1 features many of the artist’s most iconic interactive works. Some are on view daily, while others follow the schedule below.