When you come from a family that doesn’t normally say ‘I love you’, where do all the feelings go? Is it possible to let a fried egg replace a hug or show empathy through a bowl of perfectly-cooked noodles?

Gather around the Magenta House table on Friday 23 May with food journalist Candice Chung as we explore the way we sit with tricky feelings by sharing meals together. For this interactive dinner event, Candice will be in conversation with culture worker Mariam Ella Arcilla about the food grammar of migrant households using Candice’s new memoir ‘Chinese Parents Don’t Say I Love You’ as a prompt. Enjoy home-style Chinese dishes prepared by chef and food curator Xinyi Lim inspired by the book and join in on casual chats as Candice talks about the joys and challenges of learning to read her parents’ coded love language at the dinner table. In moments when words fail us, can certain meals become a placeholder for complicated emotions?

Tough Cuts: Beyond love language at the dinner table
Talk / Reading / Themed Menu
Friday 23 May, 7pm - 9pm
Magenta House
Address provided to registered attendees
$95 + bf

Notes:
• Ticket costs go towards food ingredients and labour.
• Prior reading of the book not required.
• Copies of the book will be available to buy on the night, signed by the author.
• Due to the intimate nature of this event and the theme-driven pescatarian menu, we’re unable to accommodate dietary restrictions. Thanks for understanding!

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Biographies

Candice Chung is a writer, editor and a former restaurant reviewer for The Sun-Herald. Her work has appeared in The Guardian, The Sydney Morning Herald, Good Food, The Australian Gourmet Traveller, SBS Food, Griffith Review and more. She is a founding member of Diversity in Food Media Australia, which supports and promotes underrepresented voices in food media.

Xinyi Lim is a chef and food curator, currently leading food programming at Powerhouse Museum. Her exploration of the food industry has seen her cooking in kitchens across New York, Mexico City and Sydney, as well as developing and delivering cultural food events and festivals. Through her ongoing project, Megafauna, she uses food as an artistic tool for social justice, building community and the exploration of culture and heritage.

Mariam Ella Arcilla is a creative producer, community facilitator, and writer. She runs Magenta House, a gathering and knowledge-sharing space in Sydney that comes alive through workshops, communal meals, talks, a library and a shop. Mariam is a co-editor of Debris Magazine and former Co-Chair of Runway Journal and has contributed to programs at Institute of Modern Art, Arts House Melbourne, 4A, Saluhan, Welcome Merchant, Liquid Architecture, and HOTA. Her community work is featured on SBS Radio, ABC TV, Never Too Small, Broadsheet and Habitus.

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For event enquiries, pls contact Mariam on housekeeper@magentahouse.com.au.