Various photographersMe Nu

Is it a book, is it a sculpture? No, it’s a Me Nu. The latest work by Ruben Lundgren and Timothy Prus has been produced to coincide with their exhibition “Anything that walks” held at the Jimei x Arles International Photo Festival, November 2018.

Like photography itself, a menu explores the nature of taste and style. Sweet, salty, sour, fatty and bitter are all found in this deranged menu. New and unexpected combinations of flavour unhinge the imagination. All the pictures relate to Chinese food culture and are vernacular in the sense they were not made as art, although the food most certainly was.

The time span covered in this menu is the second half of the 20th century. Photographs from food science and agriculture rub shoulders with shots from cooking competitions, cookery books and family photo albums. The highs and especially the lows of Chinese food photography are considered in depth from the Great Wall of China made of spam to fridge advertising images where even the freezers are stuffed with delicacies. Never mind if you don’t own a restaurant, Me Nu is a must for all lovers of food photography.

The source photos are from the Archive of Modern Conflict who crafted the piece in association with Galerie Ben Alors. It comes in its own bespoke menu holder with a complimentary set of toothpicks.