COME TO THE TABLE: HOSPITALITY

On Sunday, 8 March at 5 PM the following people met at the Chazen Museum to discuss the theme of HOSPITALITY:

Andrea Steinberger
Francesco Mangano
James When
Jeff Novak
Joshua Kent
Julie and Noah Przybylski
Mel Trudeau

HOUSE MADE SOUR PICKLES
BROILED RED PEPPER, EGGPLANT & GARLIC SOUP
SOURDOUGH SEVEN-GRAIN SEMOLINA BREAD
GREEN SALAD with hazelnut dressing
HOT-SMOKED SALMON
with Horseradish Dill Yogurt or Anchovy Caper Butter
TORTILLA ESPAÑOLA
TOPHAT RED VELVET CAKE
BLACK SEEDLESS GRAPES
CHEESE PLATTER curated by and courtesy of James Wehn
Julianna Capriole, Herbed Goat Cheese (Indiana)
Roelli Haus Select Cheddar, Cow (Wisconsin)
Artequeso Manchego, Sheep (Spain)
Sheep Raclette, MS J and Co (Wisconsin)
Red Hawk, Cowgirl Creamery, Cow (California)
Little Boy Blue, Hook’s Cheese, Sheep (Wisconsin)
Bayley Hazen Blue, Jasper Hill Farm, Cow (Vermont)

The group seated at the table with Orion looking on.

Discussion

We discussed the following questions which were contributed by participants.

What was your first magical restaurant or food hospitality experience?
What does “hospitality” mean in and outside of the hospitality business? How does it change from country to country?
What does it mean (and what does it take) to make a campus or a community hospitable?
Should art museums and galleries be hospitable spaces? What makes them so (or not)?
What do the art works on display teach us about the theme of hospitality?
How can we balance costs while maintaining high quality experiences?
How is meeting dietary restrictions part of hospitality?
How do you define “elegance”? How is this feeling conjured? How does this occur outside traditionally classed definitions?
What do people (customers) wear to hospitality contexts (like restaurants or other service industry venues) and why?
As you strive for hospitality, what gets in your way?
How do “generosity” and “hospitality” overlap? How do they differ?
What was your first magical restaurant or food hospitality experience?
What does “hospitality” mean in and outside of the hospitality business? How does it change from country to country?
What does it mean (and what does it take) to make a campus or a community hospitable?
Should art museums and galleries be hospitable spaces? What makes them so (or not)?
What do the art works on display teach us about the theme of hospitality?
How can we balance costs while maintaining high quality experiences?
How is meeting dietary restrictions part of hospitality?
How do you define “elegance”? How is this feeling conjured? How does this occur outside traditionally classed definitions?
What do people (customers) wear to hospitality contexts (like restaurants or other service industry venues) and why?
As you strive for hospitality, what gets in your way?
How do “generosity” and “hospitality” overlap? How do they differ?

During the meal, we we encouraged participants to make notes and track key words on the table. Here is that list. Upper case and bold are used to indicate multiple appearances of the same word.

ACCESS. AESTHETICS. Ambience. Art. Atmosphere. Attention. BALANCE. Best. Care.Childhood. Client. Community. Demand. Desires. Dietary Restrictions. Elegance. Entitlement. Expectations. Families. Fear to relate to others. Feed people great food. Generosity. Great food to eat. Greed. Guest. I am also a person. Identity. In your hands. INVOLVED. Money. NEED. Nurture. OPEN. Party. PASSION. Personal preference. Pitching in. POWER. Procedure. Recipe. RECIPROCITY. Right to make mistakes. Right to opinions. Right to personal preferences. Right to shine. Rules. SECURITY. SERVICE. Simple. Thank you. Time. WELCOME. Work.

a woman's hand writing on a brown paper covered table

Looking back, the absence of the looming pandemic from our conversation is astonishing. Within two weeks of the event, all the facilities operated by these hospitality workers (with the exception of the men’s shelter) were no longer open to the public.

Artworks

In addition to the works on display throughout the exhibition, the following art works were selected by the Chazen staff specifically for the theme of HOSPITALITY. (Click on image to open the item in the museum’s online catalog).