Ecuador is marked by a legacy of colonization, arcane land use and inheritance laws that together have resulted in the displacement of many indigenous people from their land, while also at times resulting in poor soil management and depletion. The resulting anemia, and geographical and cultural dislocation are entwined. This project will seek to raise awareness of indigenous foods and recipes with particular nutritional and culinary merit. Traditional cooks will teach professional chefs, who will translate them into an art context, re-valuing them for a mestizo audience and reinforcing the public perception of their cultural and nutritional value. Artist Craig Shillitto and his team will create a performative event that will serve as a frame or boundary for the overall artwork to take place. This will leave both a figurative and conceptual space to be filled by the engagement of the participants. The paradigm is that of an “open work” – one that is completed only as it is enacted in real time and space. The work is participatory, durational, and acts as an extension of the real world of economic, cultural and social relations.