</Lenin Cake>
authors: Daniil Platitsyn,
Daria Sosnovskikh
Daria Sosnovskikh
In this essay we analyze the artistic event of a post Soviet time through the perspective of food studies, as our object is directly connected to them. We got inspired by the viral videos of people making cakes with the most unusual appearances, for example, a cake that looks like a burger or a cake that looks like a cup. Those videos made us confused, as the burger-cake, for example, did not look appetizing either as a burger or as a cake. Then what is it? Technically, it is cake, but its appearance tells the opposite. We decided to go deeper, to look for something that would not only mix different features of different foods but also mix something not edible and disgusting with what we usually think of as food. During our research, we stumbled upon the performance of Russian artists, who in 1998 arranged an event called “Lenin is in you and in me” or “The Mausoleum. Ritual Model,” which was supposed to represent the political situation at that time. [1] Everyone who attended the event got a piece of cake, which looked like a Lenin figure in a coffin. The size of the cake is close to the real body size.
“Lenin tort.” YouTube video. Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dWfmJKTvlxY
In this analysis we rely mostly on the ideas of David Kaplan, food philosopher, University of North Texas, regarding the very phenomenon of food: food as meaning, art, and aesthetics. Also, we refer to the notion of Nicola Humble, food scholar from University of Roehampton (London), on cake as a stable “form” of food in both physical and philosophical sense.
As a dish and a traditionally stable form of food, cake has a history. The concept of cake remains almost unchangeable: “Cake is an idea.” [2] The phenomenon of Lenin-cake is also an idea. It is possible to divide Lenin-cake into two parts: “Lenin” and “a cake.”
As a “Lenin” part, this art object refers to the idealistic figure of a leader. Saying it is idealistic does not mean perfect. There is a strong association between the figure of Lenin and Proletarian internationalism. Here, Lenin is an embodiment of the Soviet Union’s narration. The biological body of Lenin is a subject of discussion as well. How is it moral to keep the body of a political figure on display for the public? Perhaps it is both logically and morally correct to bury the leader's body after the collapse of the socialist system.
As a dish and a traditionally stable form of food, cake has a history. The concept of cake remains almost unchangeable: “Cake is an idea.” [2] The phenomenon of Lenin-cake is also an idea. It is possible to divide Lenin-cake into two parts: “Lenin” and “a cake.”
As a “Lenin” part, this art object refers to the idealistic figure of a leader. Saying it is idealistic does not mean perfect. There is a strong association between the figure of Lenin and Proletarian internationalism. Here, Lenin is an embodiment of the Soviet Union’s narration. The biological body of Lenin is a subject of discussion as well. How is it moral to keep the body of a political figure on display for the public? Perhaps it is both logically and morally correct to bury the leader's body after the collapse of the socialist system.
The “cake” part of the Lenin-cake refers to a tradition. [2] A cake is a celebration. Through the formal analysis of the Lenin-cake, the common elements of a cake could be pointed out: it is covered with cream flowers and curls, the colors that are used are warm, and there are sponge cake layers in the cake section. So, all these elements indicate the following for the standard of a cake. But what special event is celebrated? It depends on one’s interpretation. The performance can depict both an honorable funeral for a biological body and a farewell to an ideological system.
The immediate response of art critics to the performance provides more interpretations. The act of “foodification” of Lenin's body was called a metaphor for the acts of cannibalism and communion. [3] The reason for these associations is the stage of a body that was depicted by the authors. The image of Lenin was an almost necessary component for any artist in the USSR to deserve the approval of the state’s censorship body. However, the artists usually depicted Lenin in a strong standing pose. The subject matter of the Lenin Cake opens a dialogue with plenty of Lenin’s images before the performance. The performance's audience eats the dead Lenin, not the alive and energetic Lenin.
Now, it is time to see the correlation between this case and Kaplan's thoughts on food. Kaplan says that there are a lot of true things that can be said about food, and the relevance of the interpretation of such things is dependent on the situation. [4] So, for this case, we have decided to use only two of Kaplan’s interpretations, which are food as art and food as meaning.
Now, it is time to see the correlation between this case and Kaplan's thoughts on food. Kaplan says that there are a lot of true things that can be said about food, and the relevance of the interpretation of such things is dependent on the situation. [4] So, for this case, we have decided to use only two of Kaplan’s interpretations, which are food as art and food as meaning.
The food presence in this performance is crucial and spiritual, in a sense, as all of the visitors are united by the holiday spirit that the presence of cake evokes. Moreover, the cake is shaped as a very significant figure for that time. The food, in this case, is the only thing that can add another dimension to performance, in which the work of art can be nutritious and eaten. As Kaplan says, “When we focus on aesthetic qualities, we treat food more like something we would see in a museum than prepare in a kitchen.” [4] One of the performance intentions was to create a museum-like feeling.
Moreover, the fact that the Lenin figure was made out of cake, and could be eaten raised the level of performance because of the intersection between traditional art and food art. It managed to make everyone who came as visitors resonate somehow with it on a personal level, as all of us eat food.
To contribute more from the perspective of Kaplan, the case could be analyzed through the categories of aesthetics. We have already analyzed Lenin Cake as an object of art, and the definition of aesthetic comes directly from this analysis. Lenin is presented as a corpse; however, video of a performance demonstrates the pleasure people are experiencing while eating it. At the same time, death and decay are pointed out as elicitors of aversion to food. [4] The artists managed to transform the disgust into appetite; they managed to prioritize the way Lenin Cake tastes over the way it looks; eating the tasty corpse created a tolerance for a “morally offensive act.” [4]
In conclusion, we analyzed the case from the perspective of knowledge of what cake is, and it turned out that making Lenin cake is actually a very unusual combination, as both the “cake” and “Lenin” parts of this phrase have pretty powerful meaning. Also, we pointed out how the concept of “disgust” in food appears in this performance and that the artists managed to appetize the dead figure and make this act less morally offensive.
Bibliography
[1] Assa Novikova, "Lenin-grib, Lenin-tort i Lenin-koka-kola. Kalejdoskop obrazov sovetskogo vozhdya," Knife, April 22, 2019 https://knife.media/curly-mushroom-lenin/
[2] Nicola Humble, “Cakes through History” in Cake: A Global History (London: Reaktion Books, 2010), 8, 14
[3] Nelly Chumicheva, “Political Metaphor of the Russian Actionism as a One-Way Dialogue Between Art and Regime,” Scientific bulletin of the Southern Institute of Management, no. 1 (2016): 78 https://www.researchgate.net/publication/32774711
[4] David M. Kaplan, Food Philosophy: An Introduction. New York: Columbia University Press, 2019, 27, 26, 78, 83
Authors
Daniil Platitsyn is an artist and student at the school of Advanced Studies (SAS), University of Tyumen. His research focuses on the role of sound and voice.
Daria Sosnovskikh is a student at the SAS, University of Tyumen. She is currently writing a thesis on redefinition of violence via commodification of gopnik as image.
To contribute more from the perspective of Kaplan, the case could be analyzed through the categories of aesthetics. We have already analyzed Lenin Cake as an object of art, and the definition of aesthetic comes directly from this analysis. Lenin is presented as a corpse; however, video of a performance demonstrates the pleasure people are experiencing while eating it. At the same time, death and decay are pointed out as elicitors of aversion to food. [4] The artists managed to transform the disgust into appetite; they managed to prioritize the way Lenin Cake tastes over the way it looks; eating the tasty corpse created a tolerance for a “morally offensive act.” [4]
In conclusion, we analyzed the case from the perspective of knowledge of what cake is, and it turned out that making Lenin cake is actually a very unusual combination, as both the “cake” and “Lenin” parts of this phrase have pretty powerful meaning. Also, we pointed out how the concept of “disgust” in food appears in this performance and that the artists managed to appetize the dead figure and make this act less morally offensive.
Bibliography
[1] Assa Novikova, "Lenin-grib, Lenin-tort i Lenin-koka-kola. Kalejdoskop obrazov sovetskogo vozhdya," Knife, April 22, 2019 https://knife.media/curly-mushroom-lenin/
[2] Nicola Humble, “Cakes through History” in Cake: A Global History (London: Reaktion Books, 2010), 8, 14
[3] Nelly Chumicheva, “Political Metaphor of the Russian Actionism as a One-Way Dialogue Between Art and Regime,” Scientific bulletin of the Southern Institute of Management, no. 1 (2016): 78 https://www.researchgate.net/publication/32774711
[4] David M. Kaplan, Food Philosophy: An Introduction. New York: Columbia University Press, 2019, 27, 26, 78, 83
Authors
Daniil Platitsyn is an artist and student at the school of Advanced Studies (SAS), University of Tyumen. His research focuses on the role of sound and voice.
Daria Sosnovskikh is a student at the SAS, University of Tyumen. She is currently writing a thesis on redefinition of violence via commodification of gopnik as image.