“This work presents both a nod to the Surrealist movement and an interpretation of "surreal" phenomena as I perceive them in 2019. Our contemporary psyche has been manipulated and rendered challenging by technology, politics, and socio-cultural distress. "Reality" is hard to see—fake news, quantum physics, artificial intelligence and even technological surveillance all agitate our ability to grasp the nature of reality that surrounds us. These modes of experiencing our environment converge to render our current reality surreal. The food created for Surreality, thus, was not quite what it seemed, layered with ingredients and sculptural forms that provoked anxiety and distress.
Just as Surrealism investigated our psyche as a form of social liberation, I envision our sensory / psyche being an entry point to explore and expand our social experience around a table.”
—Allie Wist
MENU:
Edible Rorschach test
Ce N'est Pas Une Salade
Salad with gold, silver, and pearl-plated cabbage
X = an Orange Soup
“Infinite power and memories”
Frankincense candies by Tessa Liebman
Are there thorns in the jello?
Jello bouquet with rose and hibiscus flowers
Exit, pursued by a cricket
Suspended future food sources: cricket, jackfruit, aloe