What is Food Font?
Food Font is an interactive art project where people can make alphabets out of food, take pictures of each letter, and later use these and other food alphabets in a fun, free, interactive online design tool. The project supports dialogue and builds community around food, health, and sustainability. It is also fun to make food alphabets and to make images that you can save, print, and share. So why not play and write with your food?
How do the Food Font Alphabet Making activities work?
A group of individuals work together to make an alphabet out of food. Each letter is photographed and later prepared and uploaded to the Food Font website. The person submitting the alphabet will also submit a name, location information, and tags for each food alphabet. Each alphabet submitted will be loaded into the Food Font design tool. A set of letters could be made out of one kind of food, or several types of food. Some Food fonts that have been made include a kale font, holiday dinner font (made of food from a Christmas dinner), a French fry font, a vending machine food font, a packed lunch food font , and a chopped vegetable font. The letter making activity is a great way for individuals and groups to have fun and to interact and talk about food.
How does the Food Font design tool work?
The interactive design tool will be available to use on the Food Font website. With the tool, you can write with various food alphabets, choose backgrounds, and do basic layout techniques to make images that can be saved, shared electronically, and also printed on your own printer. The tool can be used to make images, posters, signs, and other printed materials. You can also post what you make on the creation in the Food Font gallery which will be on the main page of the Food Font website. You will be able to use any food alphabets that you made as well as any others submitted to the tool. Background images also will be submitted for use in the tool.
Who is this project for?
It is designed for use by a variety of groups including you with your friends and family, farmer’s markets, teachers and students in the classroom, community gardens, chefs and restaurants, and people who have a passion for food. It is a fun, creative activity that anyone can do of any age, and in any size group.
What Resources support organizing a Food Font activity or event?
On the Food Font website there are a number of materials that support organizing and doing a Food Font event. These include a photograph tip sheet, an alphabet checklist, lesson plans for teachers, and promotional materials that you can download and print.
What are the alphabets made of?
The food alphabets can be made out of any kind of food that you want. A set of letters could be made out of one kind of food, or several types/variety of food.
Some examples could be an alphabet made of:
- Kale
- Vegetables grown in a community or school garden
- French fries
- A locally grown in-season ingredient
- A restaurant’s food
- A city’s food trucks
- Your dinner
- Your mom’s meatloaf
- Any food you want!
What are the project’s goals and mission?
The project has several goals which include:
- to support awareness and education about food and health
- to support the development of local community, collective creative activities, and in-person real world group interaction
- to provide a free and easy-to-use design creation and publishing tool to support interaction and communication about food
- to support the efforts and promotion of the local food movement including farmers markets, community gardens, and other groups
- to inspire individuals to think more about food and health
- to create dialogue and awareness about food
What is going on with the project right now?
The design for the interactive design tool is in the works. We are hoping to launch the beta version of the tool in Summer 2013. Kristen Baumlier is scheduling more public Food Font events for 2013 to get the Food Font project into the community and to inspire others to make their own food alphabets.
Why not play and write with your food?
