10 teams to build giant sculptures out of food cans; competition to benefit Feeding America Southwest Virginia
“Canstruction,” a creative and competitive event that pits together teams to design and build sculptures out of canned food, comes to southwest Virginia for the first time this fall with a display at the Taubman Museum of Art to benefit the region’s hungry.
Ten teams, each using more than 1,000 cans, will create 8-foot-tall sculptures in the museum’s atrium from Oct. 4-12.
“We are delighted to bring Canstruction to the Roanoke Valley,” said Lora Katz with Gilliam Katz Architecture + Design and chair of the event. “With so much design and architectural talent in our region, we’re bound to see some fun and original sculptures all for a great cause.”
Teams are allowed to only use cans that are structurally self-supporting. After the sculptures are on display, all cans will be donated to Feeding America Southwest Virginia to be distributed to the hungry throughout the region.
Last year 103 Canstruction competitions were held around the world, making it one of the largest internationally recognized food drives of its kind.
The teams must engineer, design and build their sculptures on a 10-foot-pad. Each team must hold fund-raisers to purchase the cans they will use for their sculpture. Kroger, a lead sponsor, has generously offered the cans at a reduced cost for each team and is sponsoring all of the cans for the Roanoke County School’s student team from Burton Center for Arts & Technology.
The rules of the competition state that no cans may be defaced during construction, nor can teams use glue to alter the cans. Judges will determine winners of several awards, including Best Use of Labels, Best Meal, Juror’s Favorite, Structural Ingenuity, People’s Choice and Honorable Mention.
The competing five-member teams are from AECOM, Balzer and Associates, Clark Nexsen, Hill Studio, Hollins University, Member One Credit Union, Neathawk Dubuque & Packett, Roanoke County Schools/Burton Center for Arts & Technology, SFCS and Spectrum Design.
The judges for this year’s competition are Jack Davis, Reynolds Metals Professor and dean of the Virginia Tech School of Architecture; Nancy Gray, president of Hollins University; artist Tiff Robinette; Virginia Del. Onzlee Ware; Roanoke Times columnist Dan Casey; and James Zeisler, program head of Virginia Western Community College’s Culinary Arts School.
In addition to Kroger, event sponsors are the City of Roanoke, Taubman Museum of Art, Gilliam Katz Architecture + Design and Feeding America Southwest Virginia.
To learn more about Canstruction, visit http://bscrawfor.wix.com/canstructionswva.
Note – This Event needs volunteers : Canstruction is seeking volunteer gallery attendants during the eight-day exhibit. For every hour the museum is open, Canstruction needs three gallery attendants each hour to welcome visitors. Volunteer shifts range from two to three hours. Civic and service groups are encouraged to sponsor an entire day of volunteering with nine volunteers. In addition, 20 volunteers are needed to help break down sculptures on Saturday, Oct. 12 from 5-9 p.m. To volunteer, please visit http://vols.pt/bfQ1Qn for details.
