Denise A. Aubertin began working with books in 1969, after discovering the artists’ books of Lettrist Gil Wolman and of Tom Phillips, and the food art of Dieter Roth.

"Closed books with their pages stuck together... sometimes forced open months later causing bizarre rips, pages, sentences, words overlapping... Sculpted, carved books... Books thrown into hamster cages... Books with transformed covers... Books taken along on trips that have retained traces of the places visited..." Denise A. Aubertin.

In 1974, as a continuation of this process of alteration and recreation, Denise A. Aubertin made her first "cooked books". Following whatever the book’s size, cover colour, title and contents inspired in her, she creates unique "book-based" recipes with flour, spices, herbs, rice, pasta and candied fruits, which she then bakes in the oven.

"I love the sensuality of the ingredients, the colours and thickness of the substance. The uncontrollable factors which cooking brings to each work make every copy unique, just like pottery." Denise A. Aubertin.

For her exhibition at la maison rouge, Denise A. Aubertin presents a hundred or so of her "forbidden content" works. Although sealed closed by the cooking process, the very sight of them will open your appetite.