“I think when you honor your food histories, you honor the ancestral histories of humankind. I look at food as a portal, right? It’s a portal into culture, it’s a way to connect with people that you might not connect with. People are going to come from all walks to have a good plate, try something new.”
Civic Practice Partnership artist Jon Gray is the co-founder of the Bronx-based collective Ghetto Gastro. Founded in 2012, Ghetto Gastro honors the block-to-block shifts and overlap in international cuisine and culture that happens in Gray's borough. The collective is committed to feeding, inspiring, and growing young entrepreneurs in the Bronx while establishing the locale as a culinary destination. Exploring global food traditions through the lens of the African diaspora, the collective has masterminded events for fashion designers, artists, entrepreneurs, and musicians. During Jon’s residency, he co-published Black Power Kitchen, a cookbook/manifesto that connects to narratives of rebellion, nourishment, and the Bronx. He also brought Wavy Gravy Waffles to MetFest and drew inspiration from objects in The Met’s collection tied to food and community. For his final activation, he hosted a food-sharing and art-making day in the Bruckner-Mott Haven Community Garden in collaboration with La Morada, a family-owned restaurant turned soup kitchen that works to address hunger in the South Bronx
community.
Featured Object:
Storage Jar, ca. 1858. Dave (later recorded as David Drake) (American, ca. 1801–1870s); made at Stony Bluff Manufactory, Old Edgefield District, South Carolina. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York. Purchase, Ronald S. Kane Bequest, in memory of Berry B. Tracy, 2020 (2020.7) © The Metropolitan Museum of Art
The Met's Civic Practice Partnership (CPP), launched in 2017, catalyzes and implements creative projects that advance healthy communities by bringing the skills and interests of neighborhood stakeholders together with those of The Met and artists who are socially minded in their practice. Invited CPP artists work in their own neighborhoods across New York City and at The Met to develop and implement ambitious projects and forge meaningful collaborations.
Learn more about Jon Gray’s CPP Residency here.
