Comfort is II…culinary workshop w/ Jagoda Dobecka

We invite you to a series of culinary workshops led by our resident Polish artist, Jagoda Dobecka, whose work has long been concerned with the relationship between food and memory. During the two workshops, which will be interconnected, we will take a trip into the past together using our taste buds, recalling our comfort foods, and finally moving together into the “kitchen” where we will create a dinner together.

ABOUT THE WORKSHOP:

At the outset, it’s worth noting that we are born with an innate preference for sweet and umami flavors—both of which are the primary tastes found in human breast milk. Researchers suggest that our responses to odors (including the smells of food) are almost entirely learned and rely on memory, although some of these responses emerge very early on. Ultimately, memory plays a central role in explaining nearly every facet of our eating behaviors and preferences.

As a form of memory, “nostalgia” carries various meanings, both in general and in relation to food. Much of the literature on food—particularly outside the field of anthropology—draws on the secular idea of sentimentality for a bygone past, treating food as a vessel for childhood and family memories. However, nostalgia can also be understood differently: not as the reliving of an emotional past, but as a yearning for times and places one has never actually experienced. The nostalgic recollection of comfort food, for instance, does not always stem from a genuinely happy childhood; instead, it can serve to construct a fictional narrative of such a childhood.

The two main themes of the workshops will be food and comfort. Together with the participants, we will use sensory memory to discuss dishes that bring us joy and a sense of security.

For the practical stage, we will move into an arranged “kitchen” to prepare a meal previously agreed upon with the participants. Since comfort is the key theme of the project, the experience of working in the kitchen and collaborating will offer an opportunity to reflect on the effort we invest in achieving it. The cooking workshop will symbolically conclude with a shared meal.

The workshops are conducted in English.

The workshop is FREE and for all ages.

Registration for the workshop is required: https://forms.gle/PvnuksJGXSviiT5h8

In case of further questions, please contact us by email at: monika.padejova@kair.sk

The residency program is supported using public funding by the Slovak Art Council. The Slovak Art Council is the main partner of this project.