The artwork ‘The Feast of Trimalchio’ was shown at the opening of the 53rd Venice Biennale in 2009. It is part of the collective work of russian artists called ‘Unconditional Love’ [1].<\/p>\n
‘Gaius Petronius Arbiter was the great wit and melancholic lyric poet of Nero\u2019s
\nreign. \u2018The Feast of Trimalchio\u2019 (Cena Trimalchionis) is the best-preserved part
\nof Petronius\u2019s \u2018Satyricon\u2019. Thanks to him, Trimalchio\u2019s name became synony-
\nmous with wealth and luxury, with gluttony and with unbridled pleasure. <\/p>\n
\n
\nWe searched for an analogue in the third millennium and found that the mo-
\ndern-day Trimalchio, the host of feasts lasting several days, is less a single per-
\nson than the collective image of a five-star hotel; a temporary paradise which
\none has to pay to enter. Developing the metaphor we observed that the life of a
\nluxury hotel reflects Petronius\u2019s description of endless feasting and enjoyment.
\nEven to the extent that there are guest-\u2018masters\u2019 and staff-\u2018servants\u2019. <\/p>\n
\n
\nThe \u2018masters\u2019, regardless of background or race, are all from the land of the
\nGolden Billion. They\u2019re keen to spend their time, in any season, as guests of
\nthe 21st-century Trimalchio who has spared no expense in building his palace.
\nIt\u2019s situated on an island which is the perfect combination of exotic locations.
\nTrimalchio\u2019s guests, along with their luggage, arrive by plane and cruise li-
\nner. The palace-hotel is designed as an absurd combination of ski resort, golf
\ncourse, tropical beach and equestrian trail. The \u2018masters\u2019 wear white. Their
\nclothes are reminiscent of the robes of the inhabitants of the Garden of Eden,
\nor of traditional colonial dress, or a cruise collection by a leading designer.
\n
\nThe \u2018masters\u2019 have all characteristics of the human race \u2013 they are all ages,
\ntypes and social backgrounds. One can distinguish a university professor from
\na broker; a society lady from an intellectual. Trimalchio\u2019s \u2018servants\u2019 are young,
\nattractive and multi-racial and work in the huge hotel as housekeeping staff,
\nwaiters, cooks, gardeners, security guards, masseurs. They\u2019re eternally busy
\nwith the endless celebrations. Although similar in appearance to the models in
\nthe Benetton ads, they\u2019re not dressed in fashionable clothing but in brightly co-
\nloured \u2018ethnic\u2019 uniforms. The exotic \u2018servant\u2019 is important to Trimalchio\u2019s brand
\nas a metaphor for contemporary globalism. At the same time they\u2019re a little
\nlike the brightly coloured angels of a Garden of Eden to which the \u2018masters\u2019 are
\ntemporarily admitted. <\/p>\n
\n
\nThe atmosphere at Trimalchio\u2019s feast can be seen as an absurd combination of
\nseparate realities \u2013 from the sumptuous \u2018open buffet\u2019 and a la carte restaurants
\nto the endless range of leisure options (massage and golf, swimming and sur-
\nfing, etc). This is a strange symbiosis of pleasures whose combination makes
\nno sense. The \u2018servants\u2019 are more than attentive service-providers. They are
\nparticipants in the celebration, bringing alive the fantasies of the \u2018masters\u2019,
\nbe they erotic or masochistic. Sometimes the \u2018masters\u2019 end up wooing the \u2018ser-
\nvants\u2019 and are at their beck and call. \u2018Servants\u2019 and \u2018masters\u2019 take part in an
\norgiastic gala dinner, a feast, where roles change unexpectedly and the absurd
\nappears so natural that participants and viewers are convinced and behave as
\nif the situation is normal. This complete impossibility and senselessness is the
\nbanality of Eden. <\/p>\n
\n
\nOutwardly Trimalchio\u2019s feast resembles Watteau\u2019s scenes of gallant celebra-
\ntions, baroque triumphs or feasts at Cana, where water transformed to wine
\nsurprises no-one.’ [2]<\/p>\n