Feast of Fates

Legend has it that on the third night after the birth of a child, three Fates come to visit: the one who spins the thread of life, the one who pulls the thread, and the one who cuts it. To prepare for the Fates’ arrival, the new mother sets out a feast with a piece of red silk thread circling dishes made of flour, salt, honey, seeds, basil, water, wine, oil and milk. The visiting Fates will thus be satisfied, and the destiny they foretell will be a happy one. The next day, all the food left is given away to family and neighbors. This is the Feast of Fates.
 
Inspired by this Romanian ritual, Adina Andrus created 120 ceramic objects that evoke this practice of offering and sharing food as a powerful way to create connections: with a divine or supernatural being, as in certain ceremonies and rituals, or with others around us, through sharing food as an act of generosity and companionship. In Adina Andrus’ installation, the artist’s traditionally shaped bowls, cups, and plates commingle with more idiosyncratic replicas of plastic party platters, soft drink bottles, and takeout containers, arranged as meals set for three. Alongside these installations, an offering altar, made of groceries items and snacks from local bodegas invites the viewers to engage in the feast, taking and adding food, thus connecting them to this Romanian cultural tradition.