Karl’s Perfect Day Installation

by Rirkrit Tiravanija at Contemporary Art Center Geneva | 2019 I 93min

by Rirkrit Tiravanija at Contemporary Art Center Geneva | 2019 I 93min

Video Installation
stereo sound,
93 mins

Production / Camera / Location Sound / Editing / Color Grade / Sound Desing / Mix

Comtemporary Art Center Geneva
Rirkrit Tiravanija

With this letter in hand, which they are invited to take home, visitors enter a room that has been transformed into a cinema. In this space the audience is asked to lie down and watch Karl’s Perfect Day, a memorable portrait of artist and poet Karl Holmqvist by Rirkrit Tiravanija. The film is a collage of tiny moments, whispered words, near-nothings: there is no room for the spectacular and the extravagant, just a slow flow of hours, from the moment Karl wakes up until the time he goes back to bed. The poet’s daily routine seems to be made up of small pleasures and rituals: a bike ride around Berlin, a chat with friends, a visit to Hannah Höch’s house, some vocal exercises, a performance. It is a very mindful way to live, to find meaning without actually “doing” anything, without talking out loud. This film is made out of nothing at all, and at the same time tells you everything you need to know about the relationship between art and life. Andrea Bellini.