Not just art with good taste, but art that tastes good – at Nave Gallery’s latest exhibition, “Bite: Food as Art.”

By Haley Houseman

The warmth and whimsy at the Bite: Food as Art exhibit belied the blizzard that delayed its opening. With good cheer, the opening reception and food drive at the Nave Gallery in Teele Square was well attended this weekend, despite more snow. Curated by Tori Costa and Sandy MacDonald, the exhibit features more than thirty artists and media that varies from consumable to traditional. Running Feb 21 through March 21, the gallery will also host a series of events in conjunction with the exhibit. On Sunday March 1, there will be a Coffee Mandala Making Workshop from 1:00 to 3:00 pm as well as an Artist Talk from 3:30 to 5:00 p.m.

The work in Bite invites the viewer to look at food a different way. The gallery is filled with tongue-in-cheek works that explore the creative relationship of humans and what they consume. A large-scale mosaic of photographic lunchmeat acquires a new beauty hung on the wall neatly framed, while quilting hoops delicately adorned with frosting evoke the snowy world outside. Our food is revealed as more delicate, more complicated than first glance at the dinner table. Two sets of standout pieces seemed to captivate the attendees. Alice Abrams’ pair of ceramic sculptures, Club Sandwich and I’ll Just Have a Salad poked fun at our collective eating habits while capturing the texture of the food with startling precision. The series featuring Oreo frosting cameos by Judith Klausner combined nostalgia with historical craft to create pieces that looked disarmingly like ancient Roman coins.

Alongside its artistic intentions, the gallery is collecting food and toiletries donations throughout the show to support the Somerville Homeless Coalition’s Project Soup. The gallery will host a small reception and a final food drive on the final day of the show, March 14, from 3:00 to 5:00 p.m. before the exhibit closes.

— Photos courtesy of Nave Gallery

Nave Gallery in Teele Square, 155 Powder House Blvd, Somerville. NaveGallery.org.