Δ “Chicken McNuggets: 500 Years of Culinary Globalisation” with Prof. Marin Trenk
The World in a Spoon begins with an introductory talk by Prof. Dr. Marin Trenk, gastro-anthropologist and Professor at the Institute for Ethnology of Frankfurt‘s Goethe University. Dr. Trenk gives an insight into historical and contemporary processes of culinary globalisation. His presentation will reflect not only on the culinary traditions of other cultures, but also on our own everyday dietary habits and identity. As a gastro-anthropologist, Marin Trenk studies the foodways of non-European societies, particularly the culinary landscapes of Thailand.
Δ Man does not live by bread alone – forbidden foods, filthy pigs and sacred cows
Foods that are considered inedible by some are considered a delicacy by others. Why is that? Sebastian Schellhaas uses film footage and photographs from the museum’s collection to illustrate various examples of food taboos in Africa, South America, Asia and Europe. An outline of culinary-ethnological theories regarding food taboos will form the basis for discussion and provide plenty of food for thought about our own taboos in this respect.
Seminar
Cost: 12€/6€
Limited number of places
Booking: or 069 212 35095
Δ One man’s meat is another man’s poison – Thailand’s two cuisines
In this first workshop, the focus is on Thai cuisine. Nora-Marie Hetzelt gives an introduction to its fascinating history. Tucking into a snack of freshly deep-fried locusts can give us a whole new insight into our own eating habits and food taboos. At the same time, the workshop will also explore the taboos and mutual prejudices in two of Thailand’s traditional cuisines. Participants will then cook a selection of dishes with Siriphan Klein to get a true taste of the differences discussed.
Thai cookery workshop with brief introductory talk
Cost: 36€/18€
Limited number of places
Booking: oder 069 212 35095
Δ Call that a meal? – Food and other staples with Sebastian Schellhaas
Pumpernickel in Eastern Europe, corn in Mexiko or rice in China are more than just a source of calories for the societies in question. They are meals in themselves – the very epitome of “food” and, as such, a staple of daily life. Using artefacts from the museum collection as well as films, photos and raw materials, we take a look at examples of our “daily bread”, the role it plays in our respective cultures and how it affects the way we regard other, unfamiliar foods. Fundamental theories of culinary anthropology regarding food preferences and the acceptance of unfamiliar foodstuffs will be outlined.Seminar
Cost: 12€/6€
Booking essential
Contact: or 069 212 35095
Δ The Simple Meal. Workshop with Fiaza Makumbi-Kidza and Prof. Dr. em. Gerd Spittler
In this second World in a Spoon workshop, the focus will be on the varied cuisines of the African continent. Prof. Dr. Gerd Spittler (Anthropologist, Bayreuth University), who coined the concept of the “simple meal” as a critique of Eurocentric attitudes to African cuisines, will give an introductory talk. Fiaza Makumbi-Kidza, doctor of medicine and expert on East African cuisine, will then guide participants through the preparation of a “complete” African meal.Cooking workshop with brief introductory talk about African cuisines
Cost: 36€/18€
Booking essential
Contact: or 069 212 35095
Δ 6000 Collectors. Experimental talks with Objects
Curator Dieter Roelstraete presents his latest exhibition “A RUA” (MuHKA, Antwerp) based on street life and public space in Rio de Janeiro. Here the street is viewed as a political arena, a site of artistic experimentation, a stage for cultural production, as both studio and exhibition space, and finally, as a site of encounter.
In the exhibition “Welcome to Paradise”, Shane Munro presents a collection of artworks produced in Frankfurt for trade with US military personnel in Iraq and Afghanistan. Made from egg-cups, expanding foam, and other materials Munro’s new artworks form part one of this two-part exhibition and are based on variations on the 'Koan'. The Koan, which is central to the history and lore of Zen Buddhism, consists of a story, dialogue, question or statement the meaning of which cannot be understood through rational thought but may be accessible through intuition.
Shane Munro developed the concept of the Green Room and has curated it since early 2011. The Green Room takes its cue from special effects studios and defines the place where performers spend their final minutes before they go on stage. Artists invited to the Green Room are asked to respond to the collections of the Museum.
Weltkulturen Labor
Schaumainkai 37
Opening hours: Thursday to Sunday, 12-6pm and by appointment
Information on 069 212 45115
Δ Farm to Fork and Snout to Tail – Contemporary American Food
Brad Weiss, Professor of Anthropology at The College of William & Mary, USA, explores the phenomenon of slow food as a movement dedicated to maintaining traditions of regional cuisine and local production. Weiss is interested in the question of how the origins of our foodstuffs determine the value we attribute to them. He outlines this by way of example of pasture-raised pigs and the breeding, production and marketing that has become a hallmark of local culture and fine dining in the USA.
In collaboration with the Value and Equivalent postgraduate programme of the Goethe University Frankfurt.
In the mountain regions of eastern Peru, there is a festival of initiation that involves years of planning and the consumption of up to 1000 litres of manioc beer. Bruno Illius, Professor of Anthropology at the Freie Universität Berlin, and Dr. Mona Suhrbier, custos at the Weltkulturen Museum, outline the cultural background of the festival and the role that manioc beer plays in the societies of Peru and Venezuela. Selected examples of the large, richly decorated and finely crafted vessels for beer and other objects from the collection of the museum will be presented.
When art publisher, editor, designer and curator Christoph Keller sold his Frankfurt-based art publishing company Revolver seven years ago and moved with his family to a farm at the western end of Lake Constance, he had no idea what to do with the distilling rights and the old distillery that came with the place. Today, Keller produces award-winning eaux-de-vie ranked among the top ten worldwide by Destillata and Gault Millau.
In a tutored tasting session with slide presentation,Christoph Keller introduces 15 selected fine spirits, revealing the cornucopia of regional fruits and berries, the history of distilling, its political, ecological and cultural background and the craftsmanship it involves – proving that the alchemist’s art of distillation is rightly counted among the Seven Arts.
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