Over the past several years, popular culture and the art world have taken an interest in food and farming, sometimes to the point where the lines blur between artistic interpretation and real-world work. Or perhaps farmers are unrecognized artists.

Whatever is happening, food art is no longer about using food to sculpt or paint. Food and farming are being used as vehicles to make social comments about our lives and world, and artists are using their creativity to find real-world solutions to food issues. Find out what artists are saying in this new culture of food, and stay tuned for The Glynwood Institute to become part of the conversation.

Exhibitions and Installations

Edible Estates, Fritz Haeg
Started in 2005 in Salina, Kansas, Edible Estates is an ongoing initiative to create a series of regional prototype gardens that replace domestic front lawns and other unused spaces in front of homes with places for families to grow their own food. These simple, low-cost gardens and their stories are meant to inspire others; they demonstrate what is possible for anyone with the will to grow food and some unused land.

Fallen Fruit
Initially begun as an art collaboration between David Burns, Matias Viegener and Austin Young, Fallen Fruit investigates urban space, ideas of neighborhood and new forms of citizenship and community through mapping fruit trees on public land in Los Angeles. The project has expanded to include public fruit jams, nocturnal fruit forages, community fruit tree plantings, and public fruit park proposals.

Matthew Moore, fourth generation farmer and artist

Using earthwork, video and installation, Matthew Moore is creating conversations around farming and urban sprawl. He is the last of four generations to farm his family’s land in Phoenix, AZ. Within five years, his land will become part of the city’s suburbs. Selected works from Moore include:

• Moore Estates. In 2005-2006, using sorghum and seeded wheat, Moore planted a 253 home suburban development at one-third scale on land that had been sold to development.
• Urban Transplanter. In 2009, Moore created a mechanized interactive sculpture that germinated and distributed seedlings to the community of Pasadena. Using a fenced-in vacant lot, Moore built a solar-powered conveyor belt that allowed seedlings to germinate and sprout. The plant was eventually deposited onto the city sidewalk for people to take and plant in their own garden.
• Lifecycles (working title—currently in production). Using time-lapse film, Lifecycles shows a plant from germination to harvest. Slated to be installed in selected stores and markets, Lifecycles will educate consumers about where their food comes from and will also be used as an educational tool for children and schools. Partial support from Creative Capital.

Truck Farm, Ian Cheney and Curt Ellis—urban agriculture in the back of a truck
In 2009, in the Red Hook section of Brooklyn, New York, the flatbed of a 1986 gray Dodge Ram became a portable vegetable and herb garden as well as a mobile CSA (community supported agriculture) program. Developed by Ian Cheney and Curt Ellis of Wicked Delicate Productions (and co-creators of the fantastic film King Corn), Truck Farm will soon become a full-length movie.

Window Farms, Britta Riley and Rebecca Bray—hydroponic edible gardens
for urban windows
The Window Farms project is an open source, DIY experimentation process in which people grow food in their windows using inexpensive materials. The project is designed so that each participant is free to come up with improvements and his/her own designs that can then be shared with others. The goal is to build a platform for crowd sourcing viral, small-scale innovation that creates opportunities for individuals to find and share new, inexpensive, immediate solutions to food and farming issues. Window Farms was created by Rebecca Bray and Britta Riley through an artist’s residency program at Eyebeam Art & Technology Center in New York City.

Online Gaming

FarmVille
FarmVille from Zynga Game Network is an example of popular culture embracing farming. This Facebook game application lets you acquire land and seeds in order to farm; you can even invite friends and neighbors to join you. The game is free but makes money by charging users for virtual goods that will help them get ahead or by making them fill out surveys or offers from third parties. Since launching in June 2009, FarmVille has become the most popular game application on Facebook, with over 82.7 million active users in February 2010.

Technology Based

FreeFarmFeed
FreeFarmFeed is an automatic twitter feed from weather stations at various sites around the world designed to provide instant local weather updates for urban farms and food gardens. Developed in 2009 by Andrea Polli with support from Eyebeam Art & Technology Center.