Food Production

Edinburgh Feed the 5000

ecoartscotland, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

This post comes to you from EcoArtScotland

Edible Edinburgh

Reposted from Edinburgh City Council / University of Edinburgh – see Edible Edinburgh for more information or download Edible Edinburgh 5 Oct flier 500kB – thanks to David Somervell for alerting us to this,

Please join us on Saturday 5th October in Bristo Square and Potterrow, University of Edinburgh for this Feeding the 5,000 event, with community stalls showcasing local food related action and a discussion about the future of Edinburgh as a sustainable food city.

Community stalls open from 11am in Potterrow, with a free lunch being served outside in Bristo Square from 12pm until 5,000 portions run out or we close at 4pm!

The purpose of this event is to:

Inspire awareness about local food production, food waste and social responsibility.

Engage Edinburgh residents about the proposed strategy to develop Edinburgh as a Sustainable Food City and launch “Edible Edinburgh” – an action group of the re-established Edinburgh Sustainable Development Partnership.

Feeding the 5000 is a campaign launched in 2009 to raise awareness of the amount of food wasted locally, nationally and globally and how we can solve this. Following successful events in London, Paris, Bristol, Manchester and other cities across Europe, we are planning Scotland’s very first Feeding the 5000 event in Edinburgh on Saturday 5th October 2013.

5,000 people will be fed with a delicious free meal created by celebrity chefs and community groups from ingredients that might otherwise have been thrown away. Along with participatory cooking sessions, educational and campaign stalls and more, the two days are sure to be a must for anyone who enjoys good food and cares about food waste.

ecoartscotland is a resource focused on art and ecology for artists, curators, critics, commissioners as well as scientists and policy makers. It includes ecoartscotland papers, a mix of discussions of works by artists and critical theoretical texts, and serves as a curatorial platform.
It has been established by Chris Fremantle, producer and research associate with On The Edge Research, Gray’s School of Art, The Robert Gordon University. Fremantle is a member of a number of international networks of artists, curators and others focused on art and ecology.
Go to EcoArtScotland

Powered by WPeMatico

Eat your view – The Landscape of our food

Cultura21, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

This post comes to you from Cultura21

An interesting research project, organized by the Diepenheim art society, is taking place throughout this year in Diepenheim, NL. Jeroen van Westen, visual artist and participant in this artistic study shortly describes it:

Eat your view has its focus on how our food is related to our landscape. If food builds our body and mind, and food production defines our landscape, it must be that our food is an expression of our landscape. But, when we eat, we don’t recognize our landscape. There is a blind spot for where our food comes from. In Eat your view we try to ‘define’ that blind spot in its different forms.
We hope to be able to produce strategies to minimize the blind spot, make it more transparent, and thus to release energy and create focus to work on a healthier relation people-food-landscape.

Four experts, ranging from anthropologists to Trappists, were released on an exploration day in Diepenheim, respectively in Spring, Summer and Autumn, with the assignment: “What does the landscape have to offer?” and afterwards discussing their findings with inhabitants, interested public and a panel. The short film, by documentary film-maker Sacha Barraud, shows footage of these three days.

The concluding Winter exploration day on January 12th, will consist of a public discussion of the 12 “scouts”, the panel, inhabitants, general public and invited experts.

Cultura21 is a transversal, translocal network, constituted of an international level grounded in several Cultura21 organizations around the world.

Cultura21′s international network, launched in April 2007, offers the online and offline platform for exchanges and mutual learning among its members.

The activities of Cultura21 at the international level are coordinated by a team representing the different Cultura21 organizations worldwide, and currently constituted of:

– Sacha Kagan (based in Lüneburg, Germany) and Rana Öztürk (based in Berlin, Germany)
– Oleg Koefoed and Kajsa Paludan (both based in Copenhagen, Denmark)
– Hans Dieleman (based in Mexico-City, Mexico)
– Francesca Cozzolino and David Knaute (both based in Paris, France)

Cultura21 is not only an informal network. Its strength and vitality relies upon the activities of several organizations around the world which are sharing the vision and mission of Cultura21

Go to Cultura21

Powered by WPeMatico

Urban Furrows

Cultura21, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

This post comes to you from Cultura21

As part of Maribor 2012, European Capital of Culture, the “Urban Furrows” programme includes several projects such as “Sustainable Local Supply” (promoting short economic circuits between food production and consumption), a seed library for local plant species and the “Rhizome collective” aiming to empower immigrants and jobless workers, among other projects.

Read more on Culture360.org: Click here

Cultura21 is a transversal, translocal network, constituted of an international level grounded in several Cultura21 organizations around the world.

Cultura21′s international network, launched in April 2007, offers the online and offline platform for exchanges and mutual learning among its members.

The activities of Cultura21 at the international level are coordinated by a team representing the different Cultura21 organizations worldwide, and currently constituted of:

– Sacha Kagan (based in Lüneburg, Germany) and Rana Öztürk (based in Berlin, Germany)
– Oleg Koefoed and Kajsa Paludan (both based in Copenhagen, Denmark)
– Hans Dieleman (based in Mexico-City, Mexico)
– Francesca Cozzolino and David Knaute (both based in Paris, France)

Cultura21 is not only an informal network. Its strength and vitality relies upon the activities of several organizations around the world which are sharing the vision and mission of Cultura21

Go to Cultura21

Superhero Clubhouse: the Call to Grow Theater – The Brooklyn Rail

news, , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

…This type of question isn’t always asked, but for Superhero Clubhouse, it’s de rigeur.  Founded in 2007 by Jeremy Pickard, Superhero Clubhouse is a “society of theater artists engaged in making original plays and events about the natural world via a green and collaborative process.”  How they make their work is equally as important as the subject matter itself.  A rehearsal room populated with handheld devices may be a solution to printing multiple versions of a script, yet it is also a manner of developing work with more fluidity.  They’re measuring multiple efficiencies here as they constantly tackle large-scale issues: water pollution, mercury poisoning, ethical food production.  In the process, they’re also examining an issue that theater artists are only just starting to acknowledge: how the act of creating theater can be so inherently wasteful.  For Jeremy a play is “a way to realize or actualize the conversations we’re having about bigger issues.”

via Superhero Clubhouse: the Call to Grow Theater – The Brooklyn Rail.

Call for Proposals 2012 Cheng Long International Environmental Art Project in Taiwan, “What’s for Dinner?”

Open Calls, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Artists from all countries are invited to send a proposal for a site-specific outdoor sculpture installation to be created during a 26-day artist in residency (April 11 – May 7, 2012) in Cheng Long, a small rural village near the southwestern coast of Taiwan in Kouhu Township,Yunlin County. This art project is an expansion of the 2010 and 2011 Cheng Long Wetlands International Environmental Art Projects, going into the Village as well as the Wetlands. The selected artists will work with elementary school children and community residents to create large-scale sculpture installations focused on the theme of “What’s for Dinner?”  The artworks should reflect on environmental issues surrounding food production and emphasize organic aquaculture.  Artworks will be in village public spaces, on abandoned buildings, and in the wetlands nature preserve, and artists will use recycled materials and natural materials to create their artworks that will stay on exhibition through 2013.

Proposals Due:  Feb. 8, 2012

Artists Notified by:  Feb. 22, 2012

Residency in Taiwan:  April 8 – May 7, 2012

Selected Artists Receive:  NT50,000 (US$1,662), round trip economy airfare, accommodations and meals for 26 days in Taiwan, local transportation, volunteer help to find materials and make the artworks

Send the following by email to Curator, Jane Ingram Allen, allenrebeccajanei@gmail.com

  1. Description of your proposed sculpture installation giving estimated size and materials to be used (limit 1 page as a .doc or .pdf file).
  2. Sketch of your proposed work as a .jpg or .pdf file (less than 1 MG in size)
  3. Images and image list (title, date made, dimensions, materials/media, and where located) of 6 previous outdoor sculpture installations (6 .jpg files each less than 1MG in size)
  4. CV or resume showing exhibitions, awards, residencies, education and experience as an artist (.doc or .pdf file)
  5. Contact information:  Name, Present Address, Nationality, Email address and Website (.doc or .pdf file)

For more information visit the Blog at http://artproject4wetland.wordpress.com or contact Jane Ingram Allen, allenrebeccajanei@gmail.com

New opportunity to make green theatre

news, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

I hope everyone is doing well and enjoying the summer!

We’ve been planning things for the future of the Green Theatre Project and we are very excited to announce our next project and our new name!

We are excited to announce a new, small-scale project that will take place in September. We hope to announce an even bigger project for the autumn taking place around October to December time. So if you can’t participate in this project, hopefully you can be involved in our autumn one.

We’ve received a bit of funding from V volunteer organisation to do a small devised outdoor performance around principles of the Olympics, namely culture and environment. Unfortunately, the funding stimulates the participants must be volunteers between the ages for 16-25. (Sorry to all our more seasoned performers, but the autumn project should be open to everyone.)

The Project:

We will be devising a piece to be performed at King Henry’s Walk Garden (www.khwgarden.org.uk) in Islington for their Flower and Produce Show on September 25th. It will be an interactive piece, spread out in the garden and forest space. It will look at celebrating the work of KHWG and urban gardening in general as well as looking at issues of food production, localism, biodiversity, beekeeping and the history of green spaces in London. We are keen to take inspiration from a variety of places including songs, games, stories, history, literature and real life accounts. We will also be experimenting with unconventional forms of theatre for this piece to really play and have fun with the audience. King Henry’s Walk Garden is a really interesting and beautiful space with loads of potential. It is all run by volunteers and set up as a community green space where people can grow their own food or just enjoy nature. This is a unique opportunity to work on an intimate but exciting new piece and explore relevant issues in a fun way.

We are looking for 5 performers/devisers as well as 3 creatives (designers, dramaturgy, etc.).

We will be able to pay travel expenses (a travel card a day) and provide refreshments at rehearsals. We also have a small set/props/costume budget as well as marketing and rehearsal space budget.

The rehearsals will be the following:

  • Thursday, Sept. 2 6:30-9:30pm at KHWG
  • Saturday, Sept. 4 12-3
  • Tuesday, Sept. 7 6:30-9:30
  • Thursday, Sept. 9 6:30-9:30
  • Tuesday, Sept. 14 6:30-9:30
  • Thursday, Sept. 16 6:30-9:30
  • Tuesday, Sept. 21 6:30-9:30
  • Thursday, Sept 23 6:30-9:30
  • Performance 25th September, 11-6pm

Most of the rehearsals will take place in a meeting room at KHWG, or a location in the Islington/Hackney area.

If you are available and would like to be involved, please email us at greentheatreproject@gmail.com by FRIDAY, AUGUST 27 by 5:00pm.

In other news….

To match our new phase of development we have a new name: Green Stage! Look out for a website soon!

Thanks!

-Lisa and Rosie

Artist Commission: Rebecca Beinart – Loughborough University Arts

news, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Exponential Growth is a newly commissioned project that is creating an exchange network to share locally found yeast cultures, in an experiment to see whether Loughborough’s ‘Culture’ can colonise the world, and what the limits are to growth.

There are many varieties of wild yeast present in our environment that have been used for centuries to leaven bread and ferment beer. In this form they are referred to as ‘starter cultures’.  Working with scientists, bakers and home-brew enthusiasts, artist Rebecca Beinart is experimenting with capturing and growing these cultures, and developing them into Starter Kits, which have been distributed to local residents and visitors to take care of, use for food production, grow, divide and pass on. The project is attempting to create a network through which these Loughborough-born cultures can be spread regionally, nationally and globally. The systems of transport and exchange that help the culture to spread are tracked through the project.

Exponential Growth brings into question our value judgements about locality, global economics, growth and sustainability. It is a phrase often used with abhorrence by environmentalists, and with glee by economists. Is continuous growth possible and desirable, or do all systems find their own limits?

In June Rebecca held sour-dough bread making workshop and hosted a stall on Loughborough market where people could taste the products of Loughborough cultures.  Related events in late summer and early autumn will be announced on this page.

The results of the experiment will be tasted in an autumn feast of bread, beer and wine produced from the original Starter Culture.

Click below to see the project website which Rebecca will be updating her on a regular basis: http://exponentialgrowth.org/

Rebecca Beinart is a Nottingham based artist who makes live events and mobile objects that inspire curiosity and initiate conversations.  Her projects frequently take the form of an experiment in which you are invited to take part: exploring the territory between art, ecology and politics.

via Artist Commission: Rebecca Beinart – Loughborough University Arts.

Non-Toxic Eco-Art Roundup

news, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Since it’s recently been made public that supposedly “inert” ingredients of pesticides like Roundup are not, in fact, not so very intert, we thought we’d celebrate (hem hem) with a short overview of detoxifying eco-art events.

You might have seen the buzz for it, but the LAND/ART symposium just passed.  We were forced to miss it this year, but there are some riveting descriptions on the Smudge Studio Blog. Especially check out CLUI’s Bus Tour of New Mexico’s Superlative Ground-Sky Resonances. The title is super-intellectual: the journey is all about enchantment and the atomic bomb. Feeling detoxified yet?

Fellow eco-art blogger Abigail Doan altered us to the presence of Aviva Rahmani’s new booklet: What the World Needs is a Good Housekeeper. we just got it in the mail. It’s a small, bound overview of the Rahmani’s process, detailing some of her artistic work in collaboration with restoration ecologists, scientists and architects.  An instructional pamphlet, if you will. A quote: “The value of an artist’s eye is to see relationships that might otherwise be missed.”

Lastly: they are always having fun in the Netherlands. The image above is from Yang Zhichao’ s Planting Grass, currently featured in an exhibition called  Foodprint at Stroom in The Hague. Featuring works by Fritz Haeg, Agnes Denes, and Atelier Van Lieshout,  it examines our relationship with food and landscape. The artworks are paired with a timeline that parellels advances in industrial food production with the development of European and American art. Very mentally refreshing.

Go to the Green Museum