Seeded as a shared reflection of how design have increasingly become devoid of emotive experience, this participatory, community-forming installation of objects brings us back to the core relationship we have with material through the bonding act of eating together.

Part of DOPO?’s RUNAWAY project for Milan Design Week 2024 that emphasises on collective living and slow design week, a 12-meter-long communal table form the basis of this installation. We curated over 200 objects made by 51 international makers on the long table designed and handcrafted by Munich-based designer Felix Pöttinger in collaboration with interior design and crafts studio EHAM in neighbouring lake Tegernsee. Presenting a continuously running log of chocolate salami, the expansive table serves as a versatile platform for the designed objects on display while fostering a range of holistic interactions. Every piece explores the power of designed objects as a social binding force through exchanging ideas, sharing food, playing games and music with a sense of experimentation and playfulness.

Activated everyday, the 16-seat longtable dialogue consists of invited ‘tablemates’ as anchor points, which included Jon Marshall, partner of Pentagram, Gabriel Roland, director of Vienna Design Week, Johanna Agerman Ross, chief curator at Design Museum London, Livia Shamir, Head of Research at Stefano Boeri Architetti, Oli Stratford, editor-in-chief of Disegno to name a few, and was chaired by Janice Li, curator at Wellcome Collection.

Our creative practice is deeply rooted in the intersection of food, design, and cultural rituals. We first met while studying at the Royal College of Art in London, where our friendship grew through the simple yet meaningful act of sharing meals—whether exchanging snacks, critiquing canteen food, or cooking family recipes. These experiences shaped our approach to design as a tool for fostering social interaction and cultural exchange.

For Sit, feast on your life, we invited over 50 friends from various studios—people we connected with through food and community. As curators, our backgrounds in both Italian and Chinese culture shape our perspective on design. In Chinese tradition, food is not just sustenance; it is a medium of connection, a reflection of balance and harmony, and a key part of social etiquette. Dining is inherently communal, with objects such as shared hotpots, rotating tables, and tapestries reinforcing values of reciprocity and togetherness.

The installation we curated in Milan was more than just a functional display of objects—it was an immersive experience that explored the rituals and social dynamics of dining. By bringing together over 200 objects that embody collective participation, we aimed to translate the essence of dining traditions into contemporary design. Through making, cooking, and feasting, our work continues to expand the boundaries of community, celebrating cultural narratives and the role of design in shaping shared experiences.

As curators, we are Ambra Dentella, Anne Zhou, and Janice Li—three friends who met during our time at the Royal College of Art in London—who have continued to bond, think and eat together with our community in the years that followed. Ambra Dentella is a designer and research. Her creative practice is driven by a deep fascination with materiality. She is currently working at Snook in London as a senior design researcher. Anne Zhou is a curator and maker. Her studio Miman focuses on curation, spatial design, and fabrication. She is currently teaching at Goldsmiths, University of London and working as a 3D designer at the Victoria & Albert Museum in London. Janice Li is a curator at Wellcome Collection working at the intersection of art, design and health, and has most recently curated The Cult of Beauty. She was formerly an assistant curator at the Victoria & Albert Museum in London. Participating designers and makers’ bios are linked on our Instagram page sit.feast.