The Ohio Craft Museum’s new exhibit is designed to make visitors think.
“Food Justice: Growing a Healthier Community Through Art” features works by 15 artists that explore issues related to food security and food access, said museum executive director Kim Nagorski.
“Many people wonder how in a nation that is so rich and provides food to so many people in other countries that we have so many of our own citizens facing food insecurity,” said Mike Hogan, extension educator and associate professor from Ohio State University.
Hogan is one of the presenters who will lead programs in conjunction with the exhibition and participate in the opening reception, which is scheduled from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. July 28 at the museum, 1665 W. Fifth Ave.
The exhibition can be visited from July 25 to September. 24.
“There are many different factors that affect people’s food insecurity, and poverty is the main cause,” Hogan said.
Lack of adequate access is also a common problem, he said.
“There are a lot of people who live in what’s known as a ‘food desert,'” Hogan said. “They don’t have access to a full-service grocery store. This is a real problem in many rural areas and poor neighborhoods.
“If people don’t have the financial means to travel widely to a grocery store, they may be forced to buy their food at a convenience store or gas station where healthy food supplies are scarce and often too expensive”.
The exhibition was organized by Contemporary Craft, a gallery in Pittsburgh. The exhibit, which opened last September at Contemporary Craft, is now a traveling exhibit and was presented earlier this year at the Southern Ohio Museum in Portsmouth.
“There is a variety of works, both large installations and smaller pieces, including ceramic tableware,” Nagorski said. “They are all designed to capture your imagination and make you think about food security and food access issues in our community.”
“Transaction Denied,” a facility created by Xena Ni in collaboration with Mollie Ruskin, uses receipts from clients participating in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) in Washington, D.C., Nagorski said.
“There was some kind of glitch in the computer and these people were showing up to get their food, but they were being denied because of the glitch,” Nagoski said. “All receipts have the message ‘transaction declined’ stamped on them.”
Ruskin made curtains from the receipts. At the end of the installation, they can listen to recordings of voicemail messages and phone conversations between SNAP representatives and customers who were denied service.
Hogan said his Lunch and Learn program, to be offered at noon Aug. 11 at the museum, will address some of the factors affecting food security and access in central Ohio.
Hogan helps manage Waterman Farm, the 261-acre farm operated by OSU Extension on the west side of campus along Lane Avenue.
On the farm and in numerous gardens operated by volunteer participants in OSU’s Master Gardener program, more than 31,000 pounds of fruits and vegetables were grown last season, Hogan said.
The product was distributed to 31 food pantries in central Ohio, he said.
Hogan plans to offer a tour of Waterman Farm from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. August 30 in conjunction with the exhibition.
Other educational workshops will be offered throughout the exhibition, Nagorski said.
Representatives from several community organizations, including Highland Youth Gardens, Yellowbird Food Shed and Food Rescue US, are scheduled to speak about their work at the opening reception, she said.
Tabouli Cafe food truck is also scheduled to serve Mediterranean dishes during the reception.
The museum is open from 10 a.m. at 5 p.m. weekdays, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturdays and from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. sundays
More information available at ohiocraft.org.
