Cheng’s “A recipe is a treasure map to find home”, her first project in the US, is a participatory art project and exhibition exploring the intimate connection between food, memory, and migration.
Over the next month Cheng will invite guests (particularly, immigrants who have lived in LA for at least 5 years) for one-on-one interviews, to share the family recipes that hold deep personal and cultural significance. Through these stories, Cheng seeks to illuminate how culinary traditions act as vessels for identity, connection, and resilience across generations and geographies.
From June 16th – July 16th Cheng’s project takes the form of a community-based intervention, where participants are invited to recall a meaningful dish, its name in their native language, and how food has played a role in building community and belonging in Los Angeles. These contributions—memories, recipes, and reflections—will be documented and printed during the sessions, forming the foundation of the exhibition.
To sign up to be interviewed by Jen Pei Cheng please follow the link below. Interview slots are available from June 16 to July 16, every Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday.
Morning: 10-11 AM, Evening: 6-7 PM.
https://forms.gle/ZwRaqCkann1SNzJY6
From July 24 – August 24, the collected stories will be transformed into a multimedia installation featuring food-inspired sculptural works and documentary photography. By reimagining recipes as sculptural forms, the artist draws attention to the material and symbolic power of food in shaping personal and collective narratives.
Through this evolving archive of shared meals and family traditions, “Jen Pei Cheng: A recipe is a treasure map to find home” offers a sensory entry point into larger conversations about immigration, adaptation, and cultural hybridity. Visitors are invited not just to observe, but to reflect on the tastes that connect them to their own roots and communities.
Jenpei Cheng’s artworks are in the form of participatory art. She investigates how food can be expressed in history and culture, while exploring the local conditions and customs of cultural differences.
Cheng has participated in art residency programs in Finland, Japan, France, Vietnam, and the Philippines for food research and artworks. She is interested in food and the way it is expressed in history and culture, as well as exploring the local conditions and customs of their own cultural differences. Beginning in the summer of 2014, she has continued a long-term project with strangers in Paris focusing on the relationship between food culture and memory.
Recently, she conducted interviews in various countries to discover the memories and stories of local residents. She assembled food and personal objects into food sculptures and presented them in photographic installations.
This residency is made possible by a partnership between 18th Street Arts Center and the Taiwan Academy.