Standing at a bus stop one cold winter day after buying groceries, Krina Patel recalls she turned towards a fellow bus passenger and began a conversation about the food they bought at the store. Very soon, the talk steered to recipes. Says Krina,”She was from South America and here we were sharing memories of food we grew up with. There was an instant connection”

Krina Patel, food and art community project evokes a similar sentiment that is universal, stirring up memories of foods that we grew up with and making the connection. Says Krina “I love sharing food stories. As I listened to food stories across the world I came to realize that food is about connecting and re-connecting - with people, places, a time in one’s life. So, I decided to start ‘Stir a Memory’ – a project that invites people to share food memories”.

This weekend at the Peabody Essex Museum, for the ‘Sensational India’ festival, she will be presenting two workshops on these topics. The first one called ‘Food and Memory is a fun, interactive drop-in activity designed to “stir your food memories". The second is a workshop called Spice Blends, where she talks about dry spice blends and the famous ' garam masala'. Participants can create their own blend to take home.

The idea for this community project evolved over time. A big supporter of her work is Dr Dinesh Patel who steadfastly encouraged her to pursue it. The goal behind this endeavor is three fold, according to Krina: To help understand why we eat and what we eat, to make the connections in our lives, and to celebrate our culinary heritage. 

In India she has launched a similar project called ‘ Swad ki Yaad” in Gujarat. In her mind it echoes Vandana Shiva, an environmentalist and philosopher’s thought that these are all movements of remembering ,where we came from and how to bring it back to our consciousness.

Her first event began with a visual arts exhibition that included images, animated shorts, sculpture and an installation. This was followed by an evening of performances and readings where she served a menu featuring foods that had been mentioned in the performances.  The event brought tremendous response. So she looked into the idea of inviting food memories through the mail. “I put out a call for food memory postcards as part of the Boston Local Food Festival, and the postcards started coming in. I displayed them at the festival. People saw the postcards and started gathering to remember and share their food experiences” says Krina.This was followed by display event at the Kingston gallery. On invitations from senior centers to public galleries, Krina exhibits her art as well as her food memories and invites people to evoke their own. It is an interactive conversation and a great community building tool, according to her. 

“To me it is also a way to connect with my own family” explains Krina.

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To participate in the food and memory event check out www.pem.org, 'Sensational India' this weekend April2-3rd.