flipThe Hamburger, Eaten Slowly in Front of the Camera
The Hamburger, Eaten Slowly in Front of the Camera
Why this dish? In 1982, Warhol filmed himself unwrapping and eating a fast-food hamburger in front of the camera, in silence, for Jørgen Leth's film '66 Scenes from America'. The most banal consumer object becomes performance and artistic subject.
A classic fast-food burger: soft bun, grilled patty, pickles, ketchup. Nothing extraordinary — and that is precisely the subject. The anonymous lunch of millions, elevated to an icon by the simple act of looking at it for a long time.
Hello, my name is Andy Warhol, and I just finished eating a hamburger. That's all. You unwrap the paper, you bite, you chew, you look at the camera. There's nothing else to understand. People always want there to be a hidden meaning, but there isn't: it's just a hamburger, like the one millions of people are eating at this very minute, and that's what I find beautiful.
- •Hamburger bun — 1 (soft support)
- •Ground beef patty — 1 (grilled filling)
- •Dill pickles — a few slices (crunchy acidity)
- •Ketchup — a squirt (sweet-sour sauce)
The Hamburger, Eaten Slowly in Front of the Camera
A classic fast-food burger: soft bun, grilled patty, pickles, ketchup. Nothing extraordinary — and that is precisely the subject. The anonymous lunch of millions, elevated to an icon by the simple act of looking at it for a long time.
Why this dish? In 1982, Warhol filmed himself unwrapping and eating a fast-food hamburger in front of the camera, in silence, for Jørgen Leth's film '66 Scenes from America'. The most banal consumer object becomes performance and artistic subject.
Hello, my name is Andy Warhol, and I just finished eating a hamburger. That's all. You unwrap the paper, you bite, you chew, you look at the camera. There's nothing else to understand. People always want there to be a hidden meaning, but there isn't: it's just a hamburger, like the one millions of people are eating at this very minute, and that's what I find beautiful.
Ingredients (period version)
- Hamburger bun — 1 (soft support)
- Ground beef patty — 1 (grilled filling)
- Dill pickles — a few slices (crunchy acidity)
- Ketchup — a squirt (sweet-sour sauce)
Ingredients
- Brioche hamburger bun — 1 (support)
- Ground beef 15% fat — 120 g (grilled patty)
- Dill pickles — 4 slices (acidity)
- Ketchup — 1 tbsp (sauce)
- Sliced onion — 1 tbsp (bite)
- Salt, pepper — to taste (seasoning)
Method
- Shape and flatten the beef patty, season with salt and pepper.
- Sear on a very hot griddle or pan, 2 minutes per side, for a grilled crust.
- Lightly toast the inner sides of the bun.
- Assemble: bottom bun, ketchup, onion, patty, pickles, top bun. Wrap in paper and eat with your hands, no ceremony.
How it was made : The chain hamburger is, in postwar America, the absolute standardized meal: same recipe, same taste, same wrapping from state to state. It is this interchangeable nature that Warhol stages by filming it raw.
The contemporary twist : Place it still in its unfolded paper, flat, front light: the 20th-century pop still life.
Sources : Jørgen Leth, 66 Scenes from America (1982), hamburger sequence · Documentation on Pop Art and mass consumption
Andy Warhol · Charactorium
