FOOD was an artist-run restaurant in SoHo, New York. FOOD was founded by artists Carol Goodden, Tina Girouard and Gordon Matta-Clark. FOOD was considered one of the first important restaurants in SoHo. ^[1] Other individuals who were involved with FOOD included Suzanne Harris and Rachel Lew. ^[2] FOOD was a place where artists in SoHo, especially those who were later involved in Avalanche magazine and the Anarchitecture group, could meet and enjoy food together. ^[2] FOOD was considered to be both a business and an artistic "intervention in an urban setting." ^[2] It has also been called a "landmark that still resonates in the history and mythology of SoHo in the 1970s." ^[3]

History

Before they founded FOOD, Goodden and Matta-Clark were already cooking for artists in New York and were already known for throwing dinner parties for friends, mainly hosted at their loft. ^[4] In 1971, they roasted an entire pig under the Brooklyn Bridge. ^[5] The roast was known as the Brooklyn Bridge Event. ^[4] The Event was accompanied by outdoor sculpture and celebrated the opening of the Alternative Gallery Space on Greene Street. ^[6] The sculptures at the pig roast had been curated by Alanna Heiss of the Museum of Modern Art (MOMA.) ^[6] Music for the roast was done by Dickie Landry and the Philip Glass Ensemble. ^[6]

Matta-Clark suggested to Goodden the idea for a restaurant, which she found appealing. ^[6] They chose a location in SoHo on the corner of Prince and Wooster streets. ^[7] There was a struggling restaurant there called Comidas Criollas and Goodden negotiated the lease from them. ^[6] At that time, SoHo was considered a cultural desert, ^[8] with struggling businesses. ^[9] Goodden had access to an inheritance which she was able to use as the initial investment for the restaurant. ^[10] Gooden and Matta-Clark wanted to create a space where they could help their friends find jobs while giving people a place to eat in what would later be known as SoHo. ^[11] Matta-Clark and Girouard began to renovate the place. ^[12] FOOD opened in October 1971 at 127 Prince Street. ^[13] During the renovations, Matta-Clark was inspired to do some of his original "cutting" art works. ^[2]

FOOD was intended to be a simple project designed to bring the artistic community together. ^[13] Artists were invited to be guest chefs, as well as working at the restaurant on a regular basis. ^[12] There was no ordering of many different dishes at FOOD, diners ate what was offered on that day. ^[14] The menu was simple and affordable. ^[15] Meals included items like raw mackerel in wasabi sauce, Creole-style stuffed tongue and anchovy onion pie. ^[4] FOOD was considered to be an "active and dynamic site" which served nearly one hundred people daily in 1972. ^[2]

In 1972 Matta-Clark created a 43-minute documentary of the restaurant. ^[16] He was often seen as the center of the energy surrounding FOOD restaurant. ^[17]

FOOD only lasted about three years with the original founders. ^[18] After Matta-Clark lost interest in the project and Goodden was left to carry on mostly on her own. ^[15] Eventually, the restaurant was handed over to new operators who ran FOOD until the 1980s. ^[19] However, FOOD did not retain its artistic roots under the new management. ^[15]

Legacy

FOOD was said to inspire others who create food art, or work in the field of relational art." ^[18] Many famous artists and performers, such as Donald Judd, Robert Rauschenberg and John Cage created meals at FOOD. ^[18] The cooking and the meals themselves were a kind of a performance art, ^[1] especially the soup. ^[5] Gooden felt that soup could be used as a sort of "painting" for the table. ^[20] Matta-Clark developed a meal that he based on bones called Matta-Bones ^[21] which cost $4. ^[18] After the meal, the bones were used to create necklaces for the diner to wear. ^[11] Matta-Bones once served over 100 people and after they ate, Richard Peck scrubbed the bones clean in the kitchen after which Hisachika Takahashi, an assistant to Rauschenberg and a jeweler, drilled holes in the bones so that they could be strung onto rope. ^[22] Another unusual meal was made of living brine shrimp swimming in egg whites ^[15] called Alive. ^[21] Perhaps the most unusual dinner was never realized: Mark di Suvero wished to serve meals through the windows of the restaurant using a crane and directing diners to eat with tools such as screwdrivers and hammers. ^[23]

FOOD was noted for using fresh and seasonal foods, which was a "vaguely countercultural" idea for the time. ^[12] FOOD was one of the first New York restaurants to serve sushi ^[8] which had been suggested by Takahashi. ^[12] Another unusual feature of FOOD was that it was one of the first places to serve vegetarian meals. ^[8] FOOD also "championed" the use of the open kitchen which is seen in many modern restaurants. ^[24]

Other famous artists who were frequently seen at FOOD included the members of Mabou Mines, the Philip Glass group and dancers of Grand Union. ^[17] Filmmaker artist musician Vincent Gallo stated FOOD was the first place in New York City he ate at.

FOOD 1971/2013

The Frieze Art Fair recognized the contributions of FOOD to the artistic community in 2013 by inviting several chefs from the original FOOD to participate at the fair. ^[5] Goodden and Girouard both contributed to the tribute of FOOD with Goodden preparing her famous soups and Girouard paying homage to the pig roast under the Brooklyn Bridge. ^[24] FOOD 1971/2013 was created by curator, Cecilia Alemani and conceived of as a special project for the fair. ^[23]

References

External links

• FOOD: An Exhibition by White Columns, New York
• Archival material related to Food film held at Canadian Centre for Architecture
• Photographs by Cosmos Andrew Sarchiapone, taken in 1972 and printed in 2006, of scenes at Food held at Canadian Centre for Architecture