Collaboration, community, creativity. Three things that alone bring together people from all walks of life, but together can create intriguing and innovative events. That’s what happened at CoCollect’s new event, Supper Studies. As a brand whose focus is on making art accessible to everyone, CoCollect partnered with Flatbed Press and Chef Colter Peck of Elementary Austin for a night filled with art, food, and community. Elysian Collective was thrilled to be a part of this event, styling the tablescapes and floral design to create an atmosphere that tied the various art forms together.
Based in Austin, Texas, CoCollect aims to highlight the diverse creative outlets in their home city. Taking their background in art curation and collection, the brand ventures out on a new project to highlight the atmosphere of Austin, while introducing locals and visitors to the unique local businesses the city has to offer.
"We launched supper studies as an opportunity to bring creative community together over great art and artful food." - Keli Hogsett, Founder of CoCollect
For their first iteration of Supper Studies, Flatbed Press hosted CoCollect, Elementary, and guests at their personal studio in Austin. Filled with various screen printing machines and an assortment of prints made by the brand for local artists and personal projects, the setting was a perfect way to tie together art, food, and community.
Upon arrival, guests were greeted with a welcome drink and Hors d’oeuvre, served on our Merida Marble Trays. The intricate marbling of the tray, coupled with the decadent small eats, provided a charming introduction to merging of art and cuisine that the event centered itself around. Following cocktail hour, the Flatbed Press team invited guests to follow them into the studio to begin an hour long demonstration on different types of print making. Since 1989, Flatbed Press has been a beacon for artists to showcase their skills in print. From lithographs and screen printing, to etchings and woodcuts, the team has created a space where people can come to learn new skills and connect through artistry.
For Supper Studies, the Flatbed team showed guests how to make prints using the lithograph, screen printing, relief, and intaglio methods. Gathered around a screen printing machine, guests watched as the different zones of color were squeezed through the mesh screen to reveal a print made by local artist Carter Watkins for Supper Studies. After a demonstration by the Flatbed team, guests were able to make their own prints to take home.
As the night progressed, guests were led to the dinner table to partake in a three course meal. Elysian Collective had the honor of partnering with CoCollect to design Supper Studies’ dinner table. For the tablescape, the goal was to tie all of the elements of print making and cooking into the different pieces.
To honor the spontaneity and artistry associated with print making, marbled trays and ceramic plates were used to serve the hors d'oeuvres course. While one can reprint the same graphic over and over, there will also be subtle differences in each one. Whether it’s a tiny smudge from too much ink, or a slightly faded spot to where the ink didn’t reach all the way, each print is its own. Like prints, each marbled tray and hand-formed plate has it’s own unique and personal design. Each curving line in the design is different from another piece in the set, giving each plate its own story. While the artistry of the evening was important to the overall look and feel of the table, the main objective was to convey the craftsmanship that went into each and every part of the event. Flatbed Press makes their prints using their own hands; Peck creates his dishes using his own hands; We styled and set each table setting by hand. The connection that ties us all together is our love for creating and dedication to our crafts. We wanted this theme to be present throughout our table design, and chose to show that through selecting pieces that were handmade by artisans. From the clay vases, to the ceramic bowls, every item on the table is a beacon of craftsmanship and tells its own individual story.
The night’s four course meal was planned and prepared by Colter Peck, one of the founders and chefs at Elementary. Starting off as a pop-up, Colter Peck, Chris Arial, and Allan Bautista use collaboration and creativity to combine flavors and cuisine in a unique and uncommon ways. For Supper Studies, Peck created a menu using the print making theme as his muse. The meal started with a selection of appetizers, including chicken skewers, succotash tostones, and the restaurants famous al pastor tortellini. After the appetizers, Peck and his team introduce the night’s three main courses. Following the theme of bringing food, art, and creativity together, Peck designed a menu that was inspired by the three steps to print making.
Course one was “Press: salad”, which consisted of pineapple sage, tomato, washed serrano, brown butter, and a compressed peach to fit the theme. Course two, “Stamp: Main”, was a short rib corzetti with a demi glaze that was “stamped” with different herbs. Rounding out the meal was course three, “Screen: Dessert.” Dessert was the true culmination of how all three of these different elements and companies came together. Peck served a black sesame cake with pickled apricot, mint, and custard. What truly made this delicacy special was the tea bag detailing that was “screened” onto the black sesame cake to mimic the completed product of a successful print. It was a detail so minuscule one might have not taken any notice too, but really captured the entire essence of what Supper Studies is trying to convey. A unique collaboration that not only makes art accessible to all, but highlights to different creatives throughout the city of Austin, while also brining the city together.
As guests chatted over a meal, and sipped on delectable wine supplied by WM Chris Wine Co., there was a certain air of togetherness.
“The room was filled with a sense of inspiration and connection — which is what we hope to provide to our members. So it was exciting to see it come to life in such a tangible way in just a few hours." -Keli Hogsett, Founder of CoCollect
With a new found sense of connection, the Supper Studies series ended as a success. An art form that is centuries of years old is still a way to not only share stories, but as a way to create them as well. Paired with glorious food, and even better company, there’s no denying that there’s a profound sense of community that can come from unlikely places. As CoCollect begins to plan the next Supper Studies for September, we cannot wait to see what new ideas come to life from this one special evening.
