what is bread & clay?
Bread & Clay explores food as an art form and a vehicle for social change. We believe that the growing, harvesting, preparing, cooking, presenting, offering and sharing of food is an expression of identity, a connection to history and culture, an honoring of ancestry, a form of self and community care.
What started as a random collection of recipes from relatives has turned into an experiment in the art of connection through food. Bread & Clay is an archive of the food we love to eat, the dishes we cook, and the stories that are embodied in the ingredients and recipes we use, especially as it relates to our own family histories.
Along with recipes, we weave in a bit of history and culture to offer some context and areas for connection. You’ll find personal stories, interesting facts, people of note, places of origin, imagery and language to help offer different points of entry into the many layers associated with food culture, food justice, and how all things food might be a vehicle for change.
When I think of the culinary arts I not only think of food, I think of the tools we use to prepare food, the vessels that food is served in, the way a table is set, the curation of sounds and lighting. It's a full sensory experience and the way in which that is expressed and presented is a creative act and an act of care. We will share some of our experiences in places we love to eat, and feature artisans and makers that inspire us.
We feature recipes that we make and that inspire us, share stories behind the food and techniques that we learn along the way, and explore some of the different ways that history, culture, people, locale, art and environment influence our approach to food!
As an artist, my work is centered on fostering relationships, building community, and cultivating connection through meaningful social and cultural experiences. Art and food have long been the lenses through which I view the world and the tools for how I experience and affect it. They offer a way to not just learn about history and culture, but also experience it and actively engage with it.
What is the relationship between food and cultural heritage? This is what we'd like to explore on this site. Looking into the origins of attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors surrounding food. How not just recipes, but rituals, traditions and culinary practices are ways in which we communicate, connect and build community. What does it mean for immigrant people to have access to food that is so tied to their identity and culture? And how do we pass this knowledge down to preserve culture?
