Kitchen Studio is a gallery installation and series of activations at Metro Arts, West End, devised by artist Elizabeth Willing and presented as part of Brisbane Festival. The immersive, multisensory activations utilised small audience numbers and video design by Chris Howlett to be instructive and contemplative, delivering five “courses” that encouraged participants to consider the interconnectedness of food systems, what we are really consuming, and the ripple effects of our consumption that extend beyond ourselves and our communities.
We were welcomed into the space, through a corridor created with heavy mauve curtains in a printed pattern that reminded me of microbes. The “audience” was even smaller than I had expected, less than ten people almost at capacity, and we took a seat next to these strangers on a curved bench designed by Dirk Yates (Speculative Architecture).
Information was communicated by a screen that was revealed from between the curtains once everyone was seated. One of the earliest messages encouraged us to be present and requested that phones were not used. This leant itself to a more immersive and interconnected experience, which I appreciated, because Kitchen Studio could easily have been framed as an “Instagrammable” event, with its site-specific decor and edible objects.
The activation was hosted, largely silently, by three (3) people and clear instructions were communicated mostly through demonstration, so that we understood how to interact with each course. For those with allergies, intolerances, or other concerns about ingredients, there was an extensive list published online that could be checked before booking.
The first “course” was tea. We were presented with a menu of almost 100 different options and told that we had seven minutes to decide. Three menus between nine people also prompted conversation and connection with strangers as we pored over the list of blends, each with its own tasting notes and explanation.
Each tea blend on offer was inspired by, and named after, a food additive – thickeners, emulsifiers, gelling agents, flavour enhancers, preservatives, and more. The screen showed a series of E numbers floating in the ocean, bobbing on the waves or partially submerged. I chose E162 (Beet Red). The tea blends were prepared and brought to us, dry, and we smelled them. Hot water was then brought out and each cup was left to steep in clear glassware.
As we sipped our tea, the second course – shortbread – was brought out. Four small, round biscuits, each infused with subtly different tastes, were presented on individual wooden boards and we discussed amongst ourselves the flavours we thought we could identify.
The third course was chocolate, and we were each presented with a small piece, about the size of a fingernail. The hosts told us that there was a gold nugget concealed inside some of the chocolate courses, so we shouldn’t bite down. There were no nuggets discovered in our group – just delicious artisan chocolate and a coffee bean in the centre. The screen showed a shifting series of images that suggested fast food and violence, an upright packet of golden fries morphing into a gilded weapon.
Mocktails were brought out, the fourth course, stored in a beeswax vessel that had to be punctured with a straw to reach the sweet liquid inside. The strong smell and distinctive texture of the beeswax added further sensory layers to this course.
The fifth and final course was gum – a playful finish, as one of the hosts poured a variety of chewing gum onto a grooved table and they rolled and rattled. We each chose a couple of pieces and compared flavours and childhood memories of these distinctive artificial flavours and textures.
Perhaps it was the slow pace, or the additives, or the soothing sound design by Anna Whitaker, but leaving Kitchen Studio felt like stepping back into the street after having a massage. The 80-minute activation had a calming effect overall and left me in a relaxed and open headspace to consider the messages and themes of the work.
Kitchen Studio will be installed at Metro Arts, West End, from 31 August – 26 October 2024, with hosted activations (as reviewed above) from Wednesday to Saturday
For further information, visit the Brisbane Festival website
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