Installations reveal how the story of food preservation, storage and packaging over time is vast and complex. From using found objects such as ostrich eggs and gourds, and objects made from clay, wood, grass and other materials, we now store food in freezers, plastic, cardboard, glass and vacuum-packaging.
Food and eating is a basic part of our everyday life, but how often do we stop and consider the impact of our habits and taste on global trends and the environmental cost? ‘Design and Making: The Story of Food’ exhibition opened its doors in May 2014 and tells the story of food, food production, the impact of consumerism and the world of design around our food. The project is an official World Design Capital 2014 collaboration between Iziko Museums, Cape Craft & Design Institute (CCDI) and a few Cape Town based creatives and designers. Working with individuals from both the CCDI and Iziko was an absolute privilege and the curation process was more like a meeting of friends than work.
Iziko Museums describes the exhibition as follows:
“Design & Making [the story of food], in collaboration with the Cape Craft and Design Institute,traces the evolution of craft and design through food – in particular, the vessels used for its preservation, storage, packaging and distribution.
Installations reveal how the story of food preservation, storage and packaging over time is vast and complex. From using found objects such as ostrich eggs and gourds, and objects made from clay, wood, grass and other materials, we now store food in freezers, plastic, cardboard, glass and vacuum-packaging. The exhibition story is told through installations and objects: a large group of historic African, European and Asian objects sourced from Iziko’s Collections stands alongside 30 contemporary objects created by designer-makers from the Western Cape. There are also examples of modern packaging. The exhibition also reveals how vessels used for storage, preservation and packaging of food have been radically influenced through human development and technological innovation. These include the discovery of fire, salt, glass, electricity, new materials such as plastic, aluminium and cardboard; the development of fast production methods which has led to the industrialisation of food production, and contemporary challenges created by convenience food, consumerism, waste and the ultimate inequity of food insecurity in the context of global excess – all of which could do with some design solutions.” | http://www.iziko.org.za/calendar/event/design-making
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