Raising Food Awareness Through the Arts in Los Angeles

Food Pyramid by Didier Hess at EATLACMA

For those of you interested in food culture, EATLACMA, is not to be missed. This multi-faceted investigation of food, art, culture and politics presented by Fallen Fruit has been on view at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) all year with projects revolving around food as a common ground. These projects have manifested themselves as artists’ gardens planted and harvested on the museum campus, hands-on public events, and a concurrent exhibition, Fallen Fruit Presents The Fruit of LACMA.

The Fallen Fruit exhibition culminates November 7 in Let Them Eat LACMA at the museum. This all day affair promises to be exciting with such novel experiences as a tomato fight, a watermelon eating contest, chewing carolers and digestion/belly-listening sessions, to name a few.

One project on view is the Food Pyramid by Didier Hess. This installation considers the diet suggestion of Big Food and the resultant mode of food production dominant in the late twentieth century. The structure is a compact model of an operational, low-impact food garden, operating with a solar-powered pump and recycling water from the top of the pyramid. The Food Pyramid naturally balances its ecology with native bog plants, vegetables, rocks and gravel. The waste generated from the tilapia in the pond nourish the tomatoes, onions, lettuce and cilantro growing in surrounding plant containers. At the final day of events on November 7, the Food Pyramid will be consumed in the form of fish tacos harvested from this amazing, sustainable mini-garden.

Now that’s an art installation that’s not hard to swallow.