Our Program Assistant, Yannick, is out on the plaza each week engaging the public in conversations and welcoming visitors to share their thoughts and experiences through prompts on decals around the exhibition and interactive boards. From writing messages of love in their native language to locating and marking the country their ancestors were from, visitors connect with the students who created An Immigrant Alphabet by sharing part of their own story as a result of the installation.

Read more about Yannick’s time out on the plaza here!

Our second workshop highlighted sumac, a significant ingredient in cuisines of the Americas and the Middle East. Chef Anan Zahr showed everyone how to prepare musakhan, a popular farmer’s dish from Palestine, that is traditionally made during olive oil pressing season to celebrate the harvest. Musakhan features sumac-roasted chicken with fresh bread and onions sauteed in extra virgin olive oil.

Participants also learned how to make traditional Palestinian chopped salad and hummus through hands-on instruction and enjoyed samples alongside the musakhan. Food, stories, and memories were shared around a communal table, connecting meals to home and place while learning about the roots and routes of the key ingredient.

Our first workshop highlighted the culinary uses of cinnamon as one of many ingredients that have moved and adapted from culture to culture. Participants learned how to prepare Liberian rice bread, baklava, and Sudanese cinnamon tea while learning about the roots and routes of the key ingredient. Everyone shared a meal and stories around a communal table, tasting what they had prepared while connecting over topics of food, memories, and home.

Panelists Included: Domenic Vitiello, Fernando Chang-Muy and Emilio A. Parrado