This Weekend: The Meal Moves To Thomas Paine Plaza

Philadelphia is home to one of the largest art museums in the United States. Every day, buses pull up in front of it, hordes of people run up the stairs, and when they’re an easy walk to one of the most amazing collections of artwork anywhere, they raise their arms in the air, cheer like fools, snap photos, and head back down. Rocky might win in a cage match against Renoir, but Philly is a town big enough for both of them.

This weekend, to mark their 30th anniversary, the Mural Arts Program is celebrating with a piece that brings art out of the museum and into the middle of Center City. The event is a collaboration between Mural Arts and Studio Orta, artists Lucy and Jorge Orta, and it is called 70×7 The Meal, Act XXXIV. It will be a piece of visual and performance art wherein 900 participants gather at long tables enjoy a meal prepared by Chescaphe Event Group of a menu designed by Mark Vetri. The meal itself will feature locally-grown, heirloom produce and the event  is meant to draw attention to issues of heirloom foods and biodiversity, and to stimulate conversation about creating a healthier food system.

It is scheduled to take place tomorrow (rain date, Sunday) at 4:00pm. Though originally set to happen at Independence National Historic Park, the venue has been changed to The Municipal Services Building Thomas Paine Plaza due to the government shutdown. Though tickets to the event are no longer available, the organizers are looking for volunteers to host, serve, greet guests, and haul tables, and, as far as we can tell, volunteers will also participate in the meal. Claim your spot at the table by heading to the Facebook page and then filling out the volunteer survey here.

The Meal [Mural Arts]