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The Next Meal

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Lucy Weaver ︎ Lucy Weaver ︎ Lucy Weaver ︎ Lucy Weaver ︎ Lucy Weaver ︎ Lucy Weaver ︎ Lucy Weaver ︎ Lucy Weaver ︎ Lucy Weaver ︎ Lucy Weaver ︎ Lucy Weaver ︎ Lucy Weaver ︎ Lucy Weaver ︎

The Next Meal is a speculative ceramic project investigating the future food as we cope with the effects of climate change.

What is the future of food? As our ecosystems and agricultural structures spiral through climate change, how does global scarcity affect dinning? I studied the recent trends of “freeganism” (ie: dumpster diving), meal supplimentation, genetic modification, and insect proteins. While there is no one answer, some of these patchwork solutions are scalable.

Chef and food artist Jen Monroe became a jumping off point for the project. Her combination of visual narrative and use of the meal as an experience, inspired this project to take a speculative direction.

The shared interest in storytelling, and using physical objects to reveal potential futures and problems led me to speculative design methods. To show collapse scenarios I would design the dinnerware of those futures.

Concept Proposals

Representative of the precarious state our current diet exists in. Creates a literal balancing act to eat a steak. Experimented with rough coiling and hand-building techniques to create a “precious” 1-of-1 object.

High grog black clay, slab rolled and roughly torn. Also experimented with gravel cast in plaster. Transparent satin glaze, and brushed bright yellow glaze. To plate scavenged or highly industrial meals.

Tiny slipcast “plates” telling the narrative of food being reduced to pills or dust. The desinergration of the dining experience in the name of scarcity and convienence. Satin white glaze, perhaps more experimental on the outside.

Telling a story of rebirth. Could be combined with ruination idea to show growth through the rubble. Collection would show a progression of growths. Two-tones for glazing, growth is seperate from the plate.

Breaking plates then layering. Telling a narrative of destruction. Perfect to serve insects and scavenged food. Experimented with post-processing by using silicones and caulk to rejoin broken ceramics.

Defining the Scope

After exploring widely as possible, I had to refine to create focused and effective tableware. I considered the material tests and narrative qualities of each concept. The “pill dish” had a sharp and provocative narrative, successful protoypes, and a viable production method.

I began with CAD to 3D print prototypes. Initially I wanted use these to create plaster molds, but I ran into quality issues with the text and texture of the prints. Instead, I used production drawings to lathe the forms out of plaster. These allowed me to make plaster molds for slip-casting and press molding.