Food Studio / futurefarmers
“Are you ready?” asks the artist, with a sculpture shaped like an animal head over her shoulders. “Yes. Let´s go, then”, replies the baker, carrying a backpack constructed from wood filled with seeds, sourdough bread and some naan. They are followed by four other “carriers of bread”, the artist group, Futurefarmers, and the baker, Emmanuel Rang. They start the walk from Losæter – an urban agricultural site in the middle of Oslo–to the peri-urban farm of Johan Swärd.
Further On… to Land is the culmination of ten years work on a public art project in Bjørvika by international art collective Futurefarmers and the beginning of a three-year pilgrimage by Oslo-based baker, Emmanuel Rang. A small group of determined walkers started from Losæter during ØKOUKA, walked along the Norwegian Pilgrimage route to Brandbu and the farm of Johan Swärd.
On a sunny autumn day we take the bus to Frognerkilen and walk up to Bygdø Kongsgård, up the gravel road, to find ourselves surrounded by fields and forests just a few stops away from the city. All around us are the intense colours of autumn, and the sun is casting a warm, yellow hue. It is the last day of ØKOUKA, and for the third time we celebrate the week with a feast at Bygdø Kongsgård.
Why are 50 farmers marching in Oslo on a Saturday afternoon? No, they are not in town to demonstrate. They are giving some of their best soil to the most urban of places, Losæter in Bjørvika, where The Flatbread Society is creating a green space for growing food.