Talk About A Dinner Party
Chef and visual artist Justin Kouri is throwing a dinner party, and we’re all invited. No need to bring anything, except an open mind. The Dinner Party, a project funded in part by the City of Houston and Houston Arts Alliance, is a virtual dinner party. It is an art installation made up of different monitors that each project a person eating, and all together create the sensation of a gathering at a communal table.
The dinner guests weren’t picked at random. “Houston is one of the most diverse cities on the planet,” said Kouri. “I want to showcase the ethnicities, socio-economic backgrounds, genders and ages, and cultures that comprise our city while simultaneously uniting participants and viewers to Houston’s ongoing culinary renaissance.”
The Union—a light and bright restored Victorian cottage in the Arts District—offers the perfect setting. Step inside and become part of the dinner party, as 24 Houstonians of different ages and backgrounds, eat a meal. Do they slurp the pho, or try and tackle it with chopsticks? Do they go straight for the brisket, or do they skip it altogether, and pick up the baklava? What is it that makes each guest different? Or is the question rather: are they different?
Each participant was filmed separately, sitting alone in an empty, white studio with nothing but the set table in front of them. Kouri spurs on a conversation. How do we behave when there is no dinner partner across from us? Does (temporary) isolation impact our mannerism? What noises do we produce when there is no chatter and laughter, no dinner clank around the table? The artist invites us, through his dinner party, to think about our own relationship with food and isolation. And that makes The Dinner Party an exceptional serving of food for thought.
The project will be showcased at the public art space, The Union, 2315 Union Street, Houston, from May 4, 2019 through June 30, 2019. The opening reception will take place on Saturday, May 4, 2019 from 5:00 to 7:00pm
About Houston Arts Alliance
Houston Arts Alliance (HAA) is the city’s local arts and culture agency. They invest in Houston as a place to visit, live, work, honor and create through grants made to the city arts organizations and artists. Part of their mission is to commission, conserve and promote public art. and to enliven public spaces on behalf of the City of Houston. Ultimately, HAA works to improve the quality of life for Houstonians and visitors alike, while advancing Houston as a premier arts and culture destination.
