The Los Angeles County Museum of Art is currently featuring a series of installations and exhibitions looking at notions of food, culture and art. The program, EatLACMA, is co-curated by the collective that goes by the name of Fallen Fruit (David Burns, Matias Viegener and Austin Young) along with LACMA curator Michele Urton.

Åsa Sonjasdotter has contributed The Way Potatoes Go, a vaguely California-shaped planter containing soil, potato plants, plant labels and straw mulch. In the piece she explores the 10,000 years of history and culture associated with potatoes, one of the plants with the longest and richest narratives.

From the artist’s statement: “The varieties exist as a result of coincidences, accidents, planning, violence, and careful custody over thousands of years. Through tracing their different backgrounds a history of human desire appears.” Go to [ http://eatlacma.org/gardens/ ] and click on The Way Potatoes Go on the map for details on the varieties.

If you can’t check out the piece in person here are a few random details of it:

You can also click [ here ] for further information on how the artist got interested in this, one of the most primal of foods.

Over the summer this garden of historical potatoes will be viewed by tens of thousands of people. Although many gardeners will already be familiar with some of the rich history of potatoes, this installation will bring that knowledge and appreciation to a wider audience. And the artist’s story is a compelling read.