70 x 7 The Meal Act XVL

‘70 x 7 The Meal Act XVL’ was a key exhibition within Harewood House's 2023 programme for the Leeds 2023 Year of Culture. The project underlined Harewood’s reputation for ambitious programming by bringing internationally renowned artists to audiences across Leeds and demonstrates how contemporary art could be embedded within accessible and community-led programming such as the ‘Harewood Garden Party’.

‘70 x 7 The Meal Act XVL’ built upon the community workshops devised by Lucy Orta during an initial R&D phase lasting 12-months, which generated mostly qualitative data and creative outputs from community members, including food-related manifestos, text and drawings which contributed to visual language of the event. The final installation in the grounds of Harewood House on 8 July 2023, brought together over 200 people for a large-scale public meal attended by communities engaged with environmental and social issues and interested in the politics of food.

‘70 x 7 The Meal’ is a long-term initiated by Lucy + Jorge Orta (2000-ongoing), which utilises 70 x 7 as a metaphor for uniting communities through the ritual of dining. The symbol, signifying ad infinitum functions as a networking device, with each new instance – Act – creating a chain reaction of shared experiences and connections that extend beyond the meal event. 70 x 7 The Meal’ installations have previously been presented in cities including Milan, Singapore, Paris and Philadelphia.

For this 45th Act, community engagement across Leeds responded to Lucy Orta’s ‘Seed Manifesto’, which drew on the metaphor of cultivation, growth and life cycles. Seed dispersal was the central motif of the newly commissioned Royal Limoges Porcelain dining plates (ed. 200), and the 50m table runner printed with images and text collected from the community engagement sessions. The plates and table runner were commissioned specifically for the meal and used during the event to prompt conversations amongst the guests.

Additionally, art students from the University of Leeds co-designed the napkins providing a professional development opportunity for young creatives, within the wider cultural economy of the city. The menu was designed and prepared by students from Leeds City College contributing a valuable professional development opportunity to the college who are training people to contribute to the future culinary economy of Leeds.

70 x 7 The Meal reflects Harewood’s commitment to embedding themes of environmental responsibility and care for nature and community within their programme. The participatory artwork also helps propagate a collective understanding of the role that food can play in breaking down societal barriers and facilitating conversations around heritage across generations and diverse communities. The project uplifts Leeds as a healthy and progressive city, by highlighting issues of food security and climate change, while encouraging a wider range of communities within Leeds to discuss and imagine collective solutions. The project engaged individuals and communities from allotment societies, growers, campaigners, horticulturalists, and academics engaged with the environmental and social aspects of food.

The meal culminated in the exhibition ‘Seeds’, a solo exhibition of the work of Lucy + Jorge Orta in Harewood House.

The impact of the project has been to initiate long-term relationships with food-related communities across Leeds.

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