The 2,000 Pound Rib Feast
By: Yuna Wu
Published: November 17, 2009

Don't play with your food, you say?  Jennifer Rubell didn't hear you.  For the opening of Performa 09, Rubell staged a "Creation" themed food installation featuring 2,000 pounds of honey-drenched ribs, 2,000 pounds of peanuts, and 2,000 pounds of ice – all mounded in tall piles.  For dessert, Rubell brought in chopped down, fully mature, fruiting apple trees.  They lay toppled on their sides with red apples scattered on the ground of the installation space.  If the intention of this spectacle was to make a statement about mass consumption, Rubell has done just that.  Guests circled her food piles, cringing slightly at the exorbitant display.  Rubell is unapologetic about any offense her installation might cause, saying “I wanted people to be forced to examine why they’re so concerned about killing an apple tree.” 
What do you think?  Art for art's sake or do Rubell's antics make you question your relationship with food?
photo from 16 miles of string