Artist’s palate

Polenta, spinach, eggs and bacon

John Baldessari’s polenta, spinach, bacon and eggs

John Baldessari has long incorporated elements of consumption into his work. Sometimes this has manifested itself in a figurative sense, such as his early 1967 piece A Two-dimensional Surface Without Any

Articulation Is A Dead Experience, in which he allowed his words to be painted by sign-painters. Sometimes the artist has approached the idea in a literal way – perhaps best exemplified by his Cremation Project, in which he burnt all his paintings from 1953 to 1966 and baked the ashes into cookies, which were displayed with a recipe. This provocative display of metarealistic gastronomy has been toned down in Baldessari’s contribution to the Wallpaper* dining digest. His recipe is a homey amalgam of familiar tastes and textures, proving once again that, even at 85, Baldessari still has a few tricks up his sleeve.

‘Crockery’ jug, £75, by Max Lamb, for 1882, from SCP. Silver plate, £105, by Zanetto, from Harlequin London. Spoon, £65 for six-piece cutlery set, from Native & Co. ‘Lucio’ fabric in Steel, £48 per m, by Anthology, for Harlequin For stockists, see...