Comfort Hunger Series - Judith Blankman

This series of temporary installations had multiple iterations and evolutions as the work was presented over a period of eight years. The cans of food and bags of rice from this series was donated to local food banks when each show was disassembled. Addressing the state of poverty in the face of plenty, this series contrasts the “haves” and “have nots” while making a tangible contribution to alleviating hunger.

Lifestyle: Comfort Hunger

Contract Design Center
San Francisco, California 1996

The wood frame was designed to be half palette, half sofa sectional. Currently stored in my studio, it can be reused for future iterations.

Wood, canned foods, dried rice & beans, direct mail donation requests, marker,
tissue paper, edible foliage.

Dimensions:
2.5′ H x 7′ W x 8′ L

sofa made with canned foods and rice bags

Rug made from paper strips with quotes. — A rug woven from direct mail charity requests that I received over a period of several years. Currently stored in my studio, it can be reused for multiple iterations.

Rug detail. — Comfort Hunger texts:
Blue text presents a passage from Down and Out In Paris and London by George Orwell about poverty. Red text presents an excerpt from Cynthia Ozick’s short story “A Mercenary,” about gluttony.

Lifestyle: Comfort Hunger

Institute for Design and Experimental Art (IDEA)
Sacramento, California
1991

Dimensions:
10′ H x 7′ W x 8′ L

Wood, hardware cloth, translucent fabric, canned foods, dried rice & beans, direct mail donation requests, marker, hardware cloth, edible pepper plants.

In this iteration, a “blanket” woven from direct mail requests for charity is draped over the sectional sofa.

Establishing shot: L-shaped sofa made of bags of rice and canned foots on wood frame. — The food was later donated to the Sacramento Food Bank.

Wire house with rows of beds. — A wire “house” is lined with beds.

Close up of beds inside wire house. — Pillows are stuffed with black beans, mattresses are stuffed with white rice. Pennies lie on the pillow’s “head.”

link in caption for wall text — Comfort Hunger texts:
Blue text presents a passage from Down and Out In Paris and London by George Orwell about poverty. Red text presents an excerpt from Cynthia Ozick’s short story “A Mercenary,” about gluttony.

Lifestyle: Comfort Hunger

Rene and Veronica Di Rosa Foundation
(Collection – temporarily)
Napa, California 1997-2020

California State Fair Exposition Hall
Sacramento, California 1993

Berkeley Art Center
Berkeley, California 1991

Wood, hardware cloth, canned foods, translucent fabric, dry black beans and white rice, direct mail donation requests, masonite, marker, edible foliage.

Dimensions:
4′ H x 4′ W x 4′ L

Establishing shot: wire house on top of stacked jumbo cans of food on base with quotes.

Detail: stacked cans on base with quotes.

Chaise Lounge: Comfort Hunger

901 Market Atrium Gallery
San Francisco, California 1991

Canned fruits and vegetables, dry black beans and white rice. Direct mail requests for charity. Wood chaise and umbrella, courtesy of Smith and Hawken.

Dimensions:
8′ H x 6′ W x 7′ L

Chase sits "poolside" next to a fountain inside an atrium.

Detail: canned pineapple, tomatoes and beans adorn the base of the umbrella. — The food was later donated to the San Francisco Food Bank.

The chaise sits "poolside" next to a fountain inside an atrium dotted with potted palm trees. — A “blanket” woven from direct mail requests for charity is draped over the chaise arm.

Detail: cushion stuffed with alternating stripes filled with black beans and white rice. — Chaise cushion stuffed with dry black beans and white rice.

Detail: “blanket” woven from direct mail requests for charity. — Paper strips of direct mail requests for charity are interlocked like a gum wrapper chain.

Loveseat Comfort Hunger

Vorpal Gallery
San Francisco, California 1988

The first in the Comfort Hunger series. exploring the theme of food. This piece of food furniture, a metaphor for food as comfort, addressed the issue of charity and hunger in the midst of wealth, gourmet restaurants, and trendy food shops.

Wood, bags of dry rice and beans, canned food, cement, plates and forks, charcoal, plexiglas.

Dimensions:
5.5′ H x 7′ W x 2.5′ L

Establishing shot. — Rice bags served as back pillows, burlap bags of beans for seat cushions. They sat atop a base of canned food held in place with a palette-like wood frame. The canned and dried food goods were later donated to the San Francisco Food Bank.

3 arms mounted on the wall. — I sculpted my arm in clay from life (not a body cast), then cast in duplicates in cement, and mounted them on the wall. Two hold plates and forks. One is empty.

Donation box. — Money in a donation box with a window, sat in the corner for the duration of the exhibition and was later donated to the San Francisco Food Bank.