101 Cup Thoughts

(Photo by: Lyn Watanabe)

I find it interesting that a simple concept can become such a profound experience. Though there were tangible things created such as the cups and plates with images of the artist's home, the concept of social interaction is also art in itself. Nicola Atkinson took the idea of a "Fika," a coffee break with cake in Sweden (much like the tea time in England) and created a project to connect people together from two countries. During a Fika (break) at work, employees must stay together to drink coffee, eat cake and socialize with one another. Thus, their connection to one another grows beyond a working relation, but potential friendships as well. I admire this concept because sometimes people are so busy at work or at home to find the time to be in touch with people- who they are, and what they're doing at the moment. Nicola explores the idea of "how do we take our coffee?" Do we take it on the go, paying more attention to our social devices-computers, cell phones, iphones, etc. rather than the actual live company we keep? Would we be more productive individuals if we took a break from the world around us, to really know each other, even for just fifteen minutes? This idea reminded me of a poetry session I went to in Eagle Rock-Imix Bookstore, where a young, but very articulate man called our generation "socially connected, but personally alone."

Nicola's project began in Lidkoping, Sweden, in August 15, 2009, where one hundred and one people had taken fika together. The cups they drank from would then be sent to Los Angeles at the Municipal Art Gallery for another one hundred and one people to drink from while taking a fika- enforcing the idea of drinking from another person's cup, exchanging physical objects, tangible ideas, and generating dialogue with new people. Nicola assigned a name and number to each Los Angeles participant, matching them up with someone with Sweden according to their preferences and requests. I was number sixty-three- Lorena. She had requested a woman in her thirties named Lorena as well, which was quite impossible for Nicola. Lorena from Sweden is a ceramics student, who is alot of fun. Nicola paired us together because we have the same kind of energy.

[(Taken from Nicola's website) Some of the participants wanted a person in Los Angeles just like themselves, imagining what it might to be like to be there, while others were quite particular: a male vegan with a beautiful mustache, a social psychologist, a jazz musician, an environmentalist, a fisherman, a music therapist. Many were just open to someone new and unknown. As might be expected, she did receive four requests for famous people: Clint Eastwood, Sam Elliot, Sam Harris and Kat von D.] Clint Eastwood would have been at our table (6) if he was available. That would have been an interesting Fika experience! My table brought interesting props such as a deck of cards to play black jack, a ceramic fish centerpiece filled with bourbon (!), and a vase of flowers. It was indeed a great time with new people. We talked about how we all got involved with the project and our connection- whether close or distant with the artist, Nicola. It made me feel connected to everyone, in some way, to some degree.

I especially enjoyed the vibes in coffee shop/house built in the gallery. Nicola's idea being that there usually is a coffee shop built into an art gallery to provide additional funding for the institution. Why not create the coffee shop as an individual artwork by the artist representing the exchange of ideas and conversation? To re-iterate what I've said in the beginning, this social interaction is art in itself. I loved how the rounded shelves resembled large cake tiers. I was also strangely drawn to the pillows on the wall of the coffee shop as well. It gave it a comfortable, cozy, home feeling to it. Perhaps, that was her intention in the coffee shop- to make us relax and take a fika from the world to appreciate the simple pleasures in life, like coffee, cake and some good conversation.