Rirkrit Tiravanija

Artists

Rirkrit Tiravanija

Press release

Curated by Lucia Aspesi and Vicente Todolí

Rirkrit Tiravanija (Buenos Aires, Argentina, 1961; lives and works between New York, Berlin, and Chiang Mai. Thailand) is one of the most influential contemporary artists of the international scene. His work has shaped generations of artists, and his constant questioning of the artwork as an object has profoundly shifted how we perceive and engage with art today.

Since the 1990s, Tiravanija has built a socially engaged practice that often encourages visitor participation and interaction. His body of work—encompassing installation, performance, photography, film, sculpture, and drawing—transcends conventional boundaries, redefines traditional categories, and fosters a dynamic environment where involvement and collaboration are integral to the experience of the artwork.

Tiravanija’s projects emerge from a deep inquiry into cultural identity and global structures, probing the tension between reality and imagination as embedded in place.

By reproducing everyday activities—such as cooking, eating, sleeping, or playing—he reinvents the exhibition space, rejecting its idealization and transforming it into a tangible, lived-in reality. Here, ethical and cultural differences are not only questioned but also analyzed and problematized. An artwork becomes then an open process, a tool for dialogue and transformation that catalyzes encounters and fosters a living community that, despite being temporary, leaves behind invisible traces of unrealized potential.

The exhibition by Rirkrit Tiravanija in Pirelli HangarBicocca

The retrospective at Pirelli HangarBicocca will center on Tiravanija’s long-standing investigation into spatial and architectural practice.

Alongside a selection of historical works dating from the 1990s, the exhibition will feature installations inspired by iconic buildings by architects such as Rudolf Michael Schindler, Frederick Kiesler, Le Corbusier, Philip Johnson, Jean Prouvé, and Sigurd Lewerentz. Structured as a constellation of diverse environments, the exhibition will offer spaces for gathering and sharing real-life experiences, engaging with notions of leisure, play, and rest.

Tiravanija has held solo exhibitions at many of the world’s leading art institutions, including

Gropius Bau, Berlin (2024)
MoMA PS1, New York (2023)
Museum Dhondt-Dhaenens, Deurle, Belgium (2021)
Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, Washington (2019)
National Gallery of Singapore (2018)
Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam (2016)
Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth, Texas (2014)
Centre Pompidou, Paris (2012)
Kunsthalle Bielefeld, Germany (2010)
Fridericianum, Kassel, Germany (2009)
Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York (2005)
Portikus, Frankfurt am Main (2004, 2001)
Secession, Vienna (2002)
Kunsthall Oslo (2001)
Wexner Center for the Arts, Columbus, Ohio (1999)
Philadelphia Museum of Art (1998)
The Museum of Modern Art, New York (1997)
Kölnischer Kunstverein, Cologne (1996)

He has participated in numerous international biennials and group exhibitions, including

Shanghai Biennale (2025)
Jeju Biennale (2022)
Helsinki Biennial (2021)
Los Angeles Public Art Biennial (2016)
Sharjah Biennial (2015, 2007)
Venice Biennale (2015, 2011, 2009, 2003, 1993)
Gwangju Biennale (2012, 1995)
Biennale de Lyon (2007, 1995)
Bienal de São Paulo (2006)
Whitney Biennial (2006, 1995)
Biennale de Dakar (2004)
Liverpool Biennial (2004, 2002)
Istanbul Biennial (2001)
Caribbean Biennial (1999)
Berlin Biennale (1998)
Biennale of Sydney (1998)
Johannesburg Biennale (1995)

The artist has received numerous grants and awards, including

Absolut Art Award (2010)
Silpathorn Award from the Ministry of Culture of Thailand (2017)
Hugo Boss Prize (2004)
Lucelia Artist Award from the Smithsonian American Art Museum (2003)