Tasting Place: A Class Project
This website is a presentation of research conducted by Boston University undergraduate students in a course on "Tasting Place" in Spring 2022. As a class, we are exploring the idea of terroir, a French word often translated as "taste of place," that suggests that elements of place - the soil composition where grapes for wine are grown, for example - are ingested alongside foods and beverages. In other words, an eater ingests place. Taking a cultural approach, students are examining how elements of place, identity, and culture are absorbed through eating.
The course is a seminar in Writing, Research, and Inquiry with Digital/Multimedia Expression (WR 152) taught by Rachel C. Kirby. Throughout the semester, students are pursuing independent research projects related to ideas of taste and place. They will write academic research papers, and then adapt their findings to present in a digital genre. Modeled after Katy Clune's project "Making Laos: Home in a New Place," students will choose to create either a recipe blog, photo essay, podcast, or video, which will all be accessible via the "EXPLORE" tab. This tab also includes "Exhibits," which are descriptions and musings on single exhibit (primary) source that students examine as part of their research.
We invite you to look, read, listen, and cook with us, hoping that through this work you can taste place.
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For questions, contact Rachel C. Kirby, PhD Candidate, Boston University.
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