SVA Ludlow
Dorms Kitchen.

An observation
by Rashid Almheiri.

A description of the project from an object that lives in the space. You see I no longer work, been here for a while. Seen students, interns and teachers. Each comes from a different background, some slam the pot like they are angry and others cook passionately. Well I have one job to heat up, cook their food and make them feel like home.

But sometimes I feel things, I hear the sounds of food bubbling and I see how they move around their pots and food making rituals. I may be silent but I carry their stories, recipes and know their ingredients.

I learned about many recipes, its big building and many floors. Students from all around the word come and temporarily consider me as part of their home. I boil their eggs, make noodles and impress lovers, yes. I see how partners cook differently when they are about to see each other. I may be off, but I hold traces of people who once lived here.

Many people called this home. Pesto sauce pasta, soy sauce eggs, boiled pumpkin, potato nights, I engulf it all. By night I'm messy and there are crumbs around me. In the morning, when everyone is asleep a dear friend comes and cares for my wellness, cleaning the drips of sauce and scrubbing the crust that grows over me.

My friend leaves, and other visitors start coming. This one is cooking breakfast and that is making a weekly meal prep. This lady is eating bone broth, this guy is steaming cabbage, and a person in a hoodie making Earl gray biscuits very late at night.

A group hosting a party with pasta and different foods while someone is heating a mac and cheese box. They graduate, and different students circulate. I'm always here to make them warm. Making their dorms a home.

Kitchen map.

  1. Entryway and a gesture of kindness.
  2. Counter and conversation corner.
  3. Broken stove and memory traces.
  4. Clogged sink and random ingredients.
  5. Freezer and recipe generator.

Recipe Generator.

What would you cook with these ?

This is the flavor of home to some.

Whether it’s egg curry,
Ukrainian pastry with strawberry,
handmade naan or brewing Dominican coffee.
There is something magical about recipes
they could bring a sense of home wherever we go.

If you want to experience other poetic observations
and meaningful explorations. @opticorator

With Gratitude,
- Rashid.