Antoni Miralda:
The Maggic Banquet

Antoni Miralda: The Maggic Banquet

The Maggic Banquet, a participatory food-performance by the internationally acclaimed Miami and Barcelona-based artist Antoni Miralda, celebrates Miami’s diverse cultural heritage by tracing the culinary history of Maggi, the ubiquitous and universal seasoning brand. Presenting dishes from the kitchens of Miami’s various ethnic groups—all made with Maggi—in an altar-like buffet, Miralda explores the commodification and globalization of food and tradition. Accompanied by music, a special beverage, and a zine published with recipes in English, Spanish, and Creole, The Maggic Banquet turns the terrace of EXILE Books into a food-for-thought artwork. 

Born in Terrassa in the province of Barcelona, Spain, Antoni Miralda has been using food as his art medium since the late 1960s. He often creates public and ritual events centered in popular culture and traditions, especially culinary ones. The Honeymoon Project (1986–92), was an international series of ceremonial and participatory actions at multiple sites that imagined the wedding of New York’s Statue of Liberty with the Columbus Monument in Barcelona, two diametrically opposite icons of freedom and conquest. Since 1971, Miralda has lived and worked in the U.S., and since 1993 has spent much of his time in New York and Miami, where he started Food Cultura, a project that includes archives and collections, and that produces exhibitions and events around the world exploring the subjects of food diversity and its relation to culture. He was the subject of major retrospectives at the Reina Sofia Museum and the MACBA in 2016.

Antoni Miralda: The Maggic Banquet is part of Living Together, curated by Rina Carvajal, MOAD’s Executive Director and Chief Curator, and independent curator Joseph R. Wolin. Living Together is made possible by the generous support of Miami-Dade County Department of Cultural Affairs and the Cultural Affairs Council, the Miami-Dade County Mayor and Board of County Commissioners; the State of Florida, Department of State, Division of Cultural Affairs and the Florida Council on Arts and Culture; and the City of Miami Beach, Cultural Affairs Program, Cultural Arts Council.