The Institute Chronicle serves as an ongoing record of exhibitions, collections, research, discoveries, publications, lectures, and activities associated with the Think Potato Institute. Entries range from contemporary projects and institutional milestones to archival discoveries, collection highlights, historical documentation, field observations, and examples of POTATOPHENA encountered in everyday life. Together they document more than three decades of potato-related art, research, collecting, and public engagement.
Tag: Think Potato Institute
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From Parmentier to Latvia: Potato for Gourmets on RETV
A 2024 RETV news segment documented Kartupelis Gardēdim (Potato for Gourmets), a Michelin-level potato dinner conceived by Jeffrey Allen Price and realized with chef Edgars Rubenis in Cēsis, Latvia.
Master Chef Edgars Rubenis on RETV, 2024 There is a really great news story (in Latvian) by RETV about the “Potato for Gourmet” dinner that took place at Michelin Star restaurant H.E. Vanadziņš Ziemeļu restorāns on March 1, 2024. They interviewed the brilliant chef Edgars Rubenis and showed some excellent footage of the meal preparations and some of his finished Potato masterpieces. Includes a lot of images of the Potato plant decorations/accents provided by Ilze Dimante and an interview with Cesis inside director Sigita Kletniece, who enabled the Potato dinner event as liaison and moderator. They even interviewed Potato Artist, Džefrijs Alens Praiss (Jeffrey Allen Price), whose idea for the dinner was the seed that grew into this historic feast — a dining experience that even Parmentier would have been impressed and delighted by.
Potato Artist, Džefrijs Alens Praiss (Jeffrey Allen Price) on RETV, 2024
Related Projects:
→ Kartupelis Gardēdim (Potato for Gourmets) (2024)
→ Open Feast: Potato Potluck (2012)
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We Say Potato At Islip Art Museum
A brand-new version of our film in-progress THIS IS HOW I SAY POTATO, is currently on view at the Islip Art Museum in the exhibition “Collaboration.” There is an Artist Reception, August 3 from 1-3pm. Thank you to my collaborator Juan Lopez Espantaleon for all the great work on this project so far, and for the installation photo. Also, a huge gratitude to the 100+ participants that have given their beautiful faces and unique languages and accents to this project. I hope you some of you can attend the reception Saturday.
THIS IS HOW I SAY POTATO film and poster on view at the Islip Art Museum, 2019. Photo courtesy Jeffrey Allen Price. The Art of Collaboration curated by Holly Gordon
ISLIP ART MUSEUM
at Brookwood Hall, 50 Irish Lane, East Islip, NY 11730
On view thru August 24, 2019.
Museum hours:
Tuesday through Friday 10am – 4pm
Saturday 12pm – 4pm
Closed Sunday and Monday
Related Projects:
→ THIS IS HOW I SAY POTATO (2016–Present)
Related Timeline Entry:
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POTATOISM on the “Dream a Little Dream” Podcast
I was featured on Episode 45 of the Dream a Little Dream podcast, hosted by Jessie Taylor. Titled Through The Eyes Of The Potato, the hour-long conversation explored potato art, POTATOISM, the Think Potato Institute, collecting, exhibitions, and the cultural life of the potato.
Special thanks to Jessie Taylor for the thoughtful conversation and for helping spread the potato message.
You can listen to the episode here: https://player.fm/series/dream-a-little-dream?v=1781570281
Update: The podcast is no longer actively maintained and the original audio is currently unavailable. Fortunately, this screenshot survives as documentation of the episode’s existence and release.
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The Exhibition Ends, the Archive Begins
Today I dismantled my JamaicaFlux installations after a rewarding three-month run. I am deeply grateful to curator Heng-Gil Han for the opportunity to participate and for producing such an outstanding catalog documenting the exhibition. Shown here are the eight pages dedicated to my projects, along with the catalog cover and expanded flaps.
Congratulations to all of the artists who participated. It was a pleasure getting to know your work and to see the remarkable range of projects represented in the publication.
Special thanks to Juan López Espantaleón and Dom Sindayiganza, whose photographs greatly enhanced the presentation of my work in the catalog. I would also like to thank co-curator Kalia Brooks and the Jamaica Center for Arts and Learning for their support, generosity, and commitment to making Jamaica Flux such a meaningful experience.
While the installations have now been dismantled, the ideas, relationships, documentation, and projects that emerged from the residency continue to grow.
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We Always Learn Something New About Potatoes
We always learn something new about potatoes when we film.
Filming Anna Prikazchikova at Suffolk County Community College. Photo courtesy Camila De La Pava. During a recording session for THIS IS HOW I SAY POTATO at Suffolk County Community College, participants shared potato folk remedies and traditions from around the world. We heard about using the steam from boiling potatoes to help relieve colds (Russia), potato slices for skincare and facial treatments (Jordan), and even potatoes reportedly used as diaphragms for birth control (Colombia).
It was a fun and productive day of filming with participants from Russia, Pakistan, Colombia, Jordan, Turkey, Germany, and the United States. Every recording session added new stories, new languages, and new perspectives to the growing archive.
Thanks to everyone who participated and to Camila De La Pava for the photograph.
Related Projects:
→ THIS IS HOW I SAY POTATO (2016–Present)
Related Timeline Entry:
→ THIS IS HOW I SAY POTATO 2016 – TPI Timeline Entry
Project Archive:
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“ARE YA LEARNIN’ SOMETHING?”
Meyer Segal was the first documented visitor to the TPI Riverhead Temporary Headquarters today.
A lifelong East End resident, Meyer is 88 years old and seemed to know the entire history of Riverhead—as well as nearly everyone who lived there. During his visit, he shared stories about the local community, the potato industry, and his own experiences selling potato sacks many years earlier, not unlike the historic examples displayed on the walls of TPI.
Meyer had plenty of enthusiasm, plenty of opinions, and plenty of advice. Throughout our conversation he repeatedly asked:
“Are ya learnin’ something!?”
The question was both humorous and sincere. I loved it. I think it captures something essential about the spirit of the Think Potato Institute. TPI has only just now opened its doors, but already the project is doing exactly what it was intended to do—bringing people together to share stories, knowledge, memories, and ideas through the humble potato.
Thank you, Meyer.
Related Exhibition:
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TPI Opens This Weekend
Very excited to unveil my THINK POTATO INSTITUTE this weekend in Riverhead, NY during the Harvest Festival. On view, 15 years of collecting potato-themed art and artifacts from around the world, with some of my own potato art also on display. Sat. & Sun. 10/9-10/10, 10am-4pm, with a Reception and Artist Talk Sat. 10/16 from 2-4pm. Located at 127 E. Main St. Riverhead, NY.
New THINK POTATO INSTITUTE logo, 2010. -
Resident Potato
Today I am beginning my two-month Artist-in-Residence program at the East End Arts Council in Riverhead, New York.
Over the next several weeks I will be presenting a number of potato-related projects, including Resident Potato, an exhibition in the Carriage House Gallery; Spuds Unplugged, a performance for the Composers Forum; and an Artist Talk and Reception.
Most exciting of all, I will be unveiling The THINK POTATO INSTITUTE on Main Street in three weeks. For two days in October, a vacant storefront in downtown Riverhead will be transformed into a temporary headquarters for TPI.
I am now officially a Resident Potato.
Please stop in if you are in the neighborhood and say hello.
ARTIST-IN-RESIDENCE
Jeffrey Allen Price
September 17th – November 14th“RESIDENT POTATO”
Carriage House Exhibition (2nd Floor)
October 14th – November 14thARTIST TALK AND RECEPTION
October 16th
5:30–8:00 PMTHE THINK POTATO INSTITUTE
Special Installation and Event on Main Street
October 9th & 10th
10:00 AM–4:00 PMSPUDS UNPLUGGED
Composers Forum Performance
November 16th
7:30 PM
East End Arts Council, 133 East Main Street, Riverhead, NY 11901
Related Exhibition: