Nicholai Avigdor Melamed
Taste of Barrie: Community through Cuisine | Barrie, Ontario, Canada
Nicholai A. Melamed (they/them) is an immigrant artist of mixed Ukrainian-Jewish/Georgian-Jewish descent. Their work is an ongoing exploration of resilience at a crossroads. Somewhere defined by lack of belonging, that nonetheless preserves a gravitation all its own. Many of their projects center transgender protagonists on a path of reconciliation with the spaces they once called home. They also speak to the interwoven topics of disability justice, sex-positive approaches to queer intimacy, and issues of class-based poverty viewed through an intersectional lens.
About the Project
An art project highlighting local, family-owned ethnic food stores, their cuisine, and the cultural connections they represent to the broader Barrie community. Each spotlight is accompanied by a story about the family behind it, and favourite recipes using the ingredients they have for sale. The project involves a social media campaign, a website hosting a virtual street map, and print materials distributed to local businesses, libraries and community centres.