Fulcrum Arts continues its three-part series on California Plants titled “Cultural Landscapes: Past, Present, and Future,” with its second webinar at 11 a.m. Saturday, Oct. 24.
During the webinar, artist and researcher Jenny Yurshansky and invasive plant culinary specialist and naturalist Pascal Baudar will lead a discussion of identifications, histories, and food-based/medicinal uses of “blacklisted” plants, so-called because these are usually imported plants which spread so vigorously that they become a threat to the native flora.
The hosts will lead an active session where participants will learn how to plant, maintain, and understand the symbiotic combination of food-based and medicinal plants embedded in the social history of California.
The series, which started on Saturday, Oct. 17, connects the participants with Southern California’s cultural landscape by way of its botany. Combining active discussions, hands-on learning, and skill-sharing, the series culminates on Oct. 31 with Yurshansky in a writing workshop session emphasizing personal narrative and embodiment.
Yurshansky is an artist whose practice is deeply informed by being a refugee. She uses material and critical parameters defined by a conceptual and research-based approach to explore the trauma of displacement, interrogating notions of belonging and otherness through historical traces, and social constructions.
Her work includes writing and working with a variety of materials, such as cast, slumped, and found glass, charred steel, MDF (medium-density fibreboard) manipulated to simulate antique display cases, embroidered textiles, hand-cut paper silhouettes of plants, laser-etched granite, and photographic installations.
Baudar is a writer, naturalist, and self-styled “culinary alchemist” based in Los Angeles. He studies wild edibles and researches new culinary uses through ancient and traditional methods of food preservation and contemporary cooking techniques. He has served as a wild food consultant for several TV shows, including “MasterChef” and “Top Chef Duels.”
Baudar has been featured in numerous TV shows and publications, including Time magazine, the Los Angeles Times, L.A. Weekly, and The New York Times. In 2014, he was named one of the 25 most influential tastemakers in L.A. by Los Angeles magazine and in 2017 as offering one of the most innovative culinary classes. He also completed the Master Food Preserving/Food Safety Advisor program at the University of California in 2011.
Each session in the series may be taken individually at $75 per class, with a maximum participation of 20.
To register, visit www.eventbrite.com/e/cultural-landscapes-past-present-and-future-tickets-122334952135.
A limited number of partial and full scholarships will be made available for those individuals who cannot afford the full price. Send an email to geneva@fulcrumarts.org for further information, or call (626) 793-8171.
