THE BIG CHAIR PROJECT FOR THE BETTER FOOD FOUNDATION BY MICHELE LLANOS

What happens when chef Jaime Oliver raises money for his charity, the Better Food Foundation?? Well, of course, he enlists his friends and colleagues such as Sarah Burton, Christopher Bailey, Paul Smith, Tracy Emin, Quentin Blake, Julien Macdonald and Matthew Williamson, giving them creative carte blanche to create chairs. Not just any,ordinary chairs, each artist was given two Fritz Hansen (a long-standing supporter of the Fifteen enterprise) ANT™ chairs: one for practice and one for the masterpiece. Four of the artists decided to submit both chairs as part of their auction lot: Barnaby Purdy, Liberty, Nunzio Citro and Quentin Blake.

They are then auctioned off. This project coincides with the 10 year anniversary of Oliver’s restaurant chain, Fifteen, and its apprenticeship program that trains disenfranchised young people to become qualified chefs. Undoubtedly, Oliver is using every bit of his media attention and fortune to raise awareness and empower those who thought they were unwanted and unemployable, those whose perception of food was just quick, fast food, fried and consumed quickly without any attention to detail.

He has been steadily teaching people about the importance of clean food, and our relationship to food, talking about the importance of meals made at home, organic gardens, bringing community and communication together and understanding where it comes from, and how it is made. Oliver delivers all this information in the most beautiful way, presenting a lotus flower of compassionate information unfolding, and giving us back what already know but had collectively tossed years ago; giving us the gift of remembering of self love through food, which leads to a nutricious body and healthy mind, which in turn leads to merging with collective consciousness and unlimited opportunity.

“IT’S INCREDIBLY EXCITING TO THINK THAT FIFTEEN RESTAURANT AND THE FOUNDATION HAVE BEEN HELPING TO INSPIRE, EDUCATE AND EMPOWER YOUNG PEOPLE FOR 10 YEARS NOW,”

“I’M TRULY HUMBLED TO HAVE SUCH A BRILLIANTLY TALENTED GROUP OF PEOPLE FROM THE FASHION AND ART WORLDS TO HELP ON THIS FANTASTIC PROJECT TO RAISE MONEY AND HELP US MARK THE OCCASION.”

said Oliver.

See the chairs at the Fritz Hansen Showroom in London now:

The Republic of Fritz Hansen
13 Margaret Street
W1W 8RN
London
Tel: 020 7637 5534

Wia.