Summary

Colour photographic print of a group of senior women and men posing in front of a multi-tiered display of bread baked in a variety of votive shapes.
The display was part of the exhibition 'Chops and Changes: Food, Immigrants and Culture', held at the Chinese Museum, Cohen Place, Melbourne in 1997, and consisted of a partnership between Museum Victoria, the Italian Historical Society, the Jewish Museum of Australia and the Chinese Museum.

The Italian Historical Society's contribution to the project was a re-creation of a 'St Joseph's Table', a multi-tiered table with bread in many mostly religious shapes. Traditionally, the bread is made as part of the San Giuseppe Day festivities, celebrated annually on 19 March, a significant Italian cultural tradition which is still undertaken in Melbourne by male and female members of Melbourne's Valguarnera Club in Clayton South. Valguarnera is a town in Sicily, from which Maria Tence, who organised the Italian community part of the project, and her parents migrated.

A video was made documenting the preparation of the votive bread at the Valguarnera Club in March 1997. It was commissioned by Museum Victoria and shot by Screen Art Productions. The Italian Historical Society holds documentation and slides relating to the 'Chops and Changes' exhibition, as well as documentation showing how this tradition has been kept alive by Italian migrants in other regions of Italy (Eolian Islands and other parts of the world including the United States of America).

Description of Content

Group of men and women posing in front of a 5 tiered table altar display of bread in a variety of religious shapes. The table is covered with a white sheet and is against a white brick wall. An exhibition text label is visible at the left hand side.

Physical Description

Colour photographic print.

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