Written by Becca Biggs
August 2008
MFA Student Presents Pietopia*
MFA student Tricia Martin presents the first-ever Pietopia* Pie Contest and Exhibit, a juried show that examines how the sense of taste can become a catalyst for change.
Pietopia* starts at 3:30pm Thursday, August 21 at the Portland Farmer’s Market Eastbank, Southeast 21st Avenue and Salmon Street.
In June, a call to entry in the city of Portland was put out: What does it taste like to be unemployed, starting a new job, just married, divorced, a new homeowner or desperately searching for housing? What kind of pie would describe the way you are feeling right now? Could you imagine your thoughts, concerns or joys transformed into the All‑American Pie?
A local jury determined five winners. The contest was judged based on the creative correlation between the sense of taste and it’s relationship to their lives. Five local artists were selected to each reinterpret one of the winning entries into a limited‑edition screen print that will be awarded to the contest winners and displayed August 21. All attendees will be able to taste each winner’s pie (while supplies last).
The project garnered the attention of Edible Portland, noting that “each pie hold a revealing self-portrait.”
Tricia Martin is an artist and designer exploring our community’s state of being and how the sense of taste can become a catalyst for change. Using Portland’s foodie culture as a base, Tricia is looking to channel the community’s emphasis on the importance of taste as a way to discover the greater idea of what this city’s quality of life truly is.
*An exhibit to discover the taste of life in Portland, OR
