In New York City, agriculture takes on a whole new meaning in the urban landscape. Agriculture is not found in fields, but in apartments in the form of plants and food. The roots of co-op’s and community gardens lie in the kitchens of the city’s elders, who feed us and raise us and preserve memory of simpler times past. When I think of urban agriculture, I think of my grandmother who never runs out of things to say and would never turn down a hungry mouth to feed.
Alexandra, this is such a compelling and exquisitely shaped piece. I have always felt that it is the art of storytelling, and the realization that the small, often dismissed anecdote, that can tell the most about a person. The tales become parables. So your grand-mother’s bean story becomes a GEORGIC parable for struggle and resilience. I was conscious of the shooting as well, the way that you allowed her hands to reveal the magic of her table top theater. Lynne