The Mobile Food Collective is a project developed
within Archeworks, an alternative design school where students work in
multidisciplinary teams with nonprofit partners to create design solutions for
social and environmental concerns. The MFC is many things: an
education/exchange platform for planting, growing and cooking; demonstrations
and distribution of seeds, soil, compost, and produce; a space activator within
a community event; or the centerpiece of a harvest dinner.
Physically, the MFC is a fleet of mobile
structures. The larger mobile unit houses a harvest table and flexible storage
cabinets that double as seats. At a smaller scale, there are bikes and
trailers, equipped to carry the modular storage cabinets. The mobility of the
project allows this dialogue to be constant and moveable—we can go where we are
needed, bringing different things to different audiences, connecting different
groups across a city, or around the world. The MFC brings people to the table
(or, literally, brings the table to the people). Along with six other design practices, Archeworks’s Mobile Food
Collective were chosen to represent the United States at the 12th Venice Biennale
for Architecture titled – Workshopping:
An American Model of Architectural Practice and celebrate the
entrepreneurial spirit of American architects and designers as initiators of
transdisciplinary partnerships that serve public good though focused research
and social engagement. To expand our Biennale presence and communicate the
project’s message while in Venice, we teamed up with architecture students from
the Italian town of Ascoli Piceno to create a three-day workshop exploring the
intersection of culinary heritage and social design. The students were
asked to bring seeds from their home town and family recipes. The American students and Italian
students described themselves through their “food histories”.
The workshop culminated in flash-mob spontaneous
interventions that provoked curiosities and conversations. Initially during a busy afternoon on
the “Ponte della Paglia”, a major bridge near San Marco piazza in Venice, and
later in the crowded and social Venetian piazzas at night. Students engaged in conversation with
passersby about food heritage and distributed their seeds.This cultural exchange was invaluable; working with
local students sparked many thoughtful discussions with an international crowd
on the streets of Venice, with wonderfully rich and varied narratives and food
histories.
The success of our workshop- design discussions, shared
food histories and further cultural exchange – underscored the project’s
success and affirmed it’s relevance with an international audience. We
learned that what initially resonated with our design team resonates globally- there
is something universal about the social aspects of food – growing, cooking,
sharing, and eating.