Municipal Kitchens : an exhibition re-imagining food as a public service in cities

The exhibition Municipal Kitchens, held at nGbK Berlin in 2024 and curated by the authors, explored the intersection of art, urbanism, and food justice. The show reimagined communal eating as a radical practice, transforming the gallery space—a former fast-food restaurant within a market hall—into a public kitchen. By bringing together international and local artists, collectives, and activists, Municipal Kitchens critically examined the injustices of current food systems and proposed new models for community-based eating. This article traces the exhibition’s curatorial approach, artistic interventions, community engagement strategies, and its broader implications for urban life and food justice. By emphasising the potential of kitchens and food as connectors in urban life, the article argues for collective eating as a tool for reimagining the future of urban public services.