In Visible Substance: L'Autre Pied Artist in Restaurant film
Channel: Heather Barnett
Date: 2015-01-11

A short documentary on Heather Barnett's project working as Artist in Restaurant at the Michelin starred eatery, L'Autre Pied, in Marylebone London.

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L’Autre Pied Artist in Restaurant 2014
Heather Barnett
In Visible Substance

Artist Heather Barnett, has been working behind-the-scenes at L’Autre Pied, observing and recording the human effort and sheer exertion that goes into making and serving its world-class cuisine. 

The artist inspired by biological design and imaging technologies, invited staff to wear heart rate trackers during service to capture biometric information including pulse rate and calories burned and then transformed the data into a series of artworks. One series of screen prints, Simultaneous Service, depicts several members of staff working the same shift. Their second-by-second heart rate is represented by dots in a spiral form - the larger the dot the higher the heart rate - each ‘portrait’ showing individual moments of pressure or physical exertion.

Simultaneous Service and the series Spinning Plates are both screen printed in materials taken directly from the Michelin kitchen, such as squid ink, red pepper and beetroot food purée. The same purées have also been observed at close magnification under the microscope, revealing hidden structures and pattern.

Collectively, the artworks make visible aspects of the busy restaurant not normally on view and offer an alternative portrait of a dedicated and highly skilled team.


All artworks © Heather Barnett 2014.
Computer coding of heart rate data by Chris Fry.
Many thanks to all L’Autre Pied staff for their support and enthusiasm throughout the residency.