Shako club (or social club) is a project initiated by grunt gallery and the artist, and created in collaboration with members of Tonari Gumi (Vancouver’s Japanese Community Volunteers Association), an association serving primarily Japanese Canadian seniors and new immigrants to Canada. With a signature investment in both collaborative and improvisational energies, Mochizuki will spend 3 months in residence at Tonari Gumi, working in their commercial kitchen to create recipes and culinary sculptures that acknowledge equally the influence of cultural background, history, taste, aesthetic value, and an abiding love of snacks. Through an ongoing series of workshops and taste experiments, Mochizuki and Tonari Gumi members will craft interpretations of the bento box (a traditional Japanese meal set containing a selection of small dishes) that combine culinary and sculptural sensibilities with stories, memories and advice, selected with care. Mochizuki will document the workshops and process through a series of drawings and recipes available online, and the work will culminate in the distribution of custom-made, edible bento “editions” to members of the public.

No artist statement available