Gallery exhibit feeds culinary students' 'human connection'

On their first day in her Global Cuisines & Connections course, Chef Mary G. Trometter, assistant professor of hospitality management/culinary arts, took students to The Gallery at Penn College, where they explored the current exhibit: "Food Justice: Growing a Healthier Community Through Art."

The exhibit ties well with one of the students’ assignments: They will track their trash and compostable materials throughout the eight-week course, which prepares classically prepared evening meals in Le Jeune Chef Restaurant.

"The trash cans are removed from the kitchen, and at the end of each lab, students weigh their nonorganic matter (nonrecyclable and noncompostable) and compostable materials using a worksheet titled ‘Measuring Your Impact,'" Trometter explained. “The opportunity to view and reflect on the art and meaning behind the pieces displayed in ‘Food Justice: Growing a Healthier Community Through Art' exhibit was a great introduction to the important issue of food justice and the human connection to food systems.

"The same students will be enrolled in the course Sustainability of Food Systems later this semester, so the exhibit provides a wonderful visualization of the same topics that course will be exploring," she continued.

"Food Justice" is on display through Oct. 8 in the gallery, on the third floor of the college’s Madigan Library. The traveling exhibit was developed by Contemporary Craft, in Pittsburgh. It explores food security – having reliable access to a sufficient amount of affordable, nutritious food – and the complex contemporary issues preventing equitable access to food.