About the exhibition
The Destination Café, by Bay Area artist Valerie Mendoza, addresses the issue of affordable housing in the setting of a pseudo café. The word “destination” holds double meaning, referring to both a locale or place of arrival, and a goal or objective. Affordable housing has become a challenge for citizens worldwide. In locations around the world, working-class people who serve the cities in which they live are being forced to move farther and farther to the periphery. The Destination Café uses imagery featuring popular global destinations to emphasize this reality, with additional information offered that reveals the challenges faced by citizens attempting to live and work in each locale. Similar information is provided for cities around the San Francisco Bay area. The piece will evolve over the coming weeks, with more information added over time, much as a traveler gains knowledge about the world as they venture out, and remain in new locations longer.
When experienced in isolation, lack of affordable housing may feel like a personal failure to those who face the challenge of securing a place to live. When considered on a global scale, it becomes clear that, far from an issue of personal success or failure, this is a world-wide phenomenon that should be attributed to other factors such as expanding neoliberalism, free market economy, gentrification, tourism, real estate speculation, and the absence of meaningful government oversight. Both large and small group discussions are encouraged in and around the café, through planned events and daily, casual conversation at seating provided. Light snacks are offered to foster a spirit of shared community.
We invent the future, every hour, day, month, year, decade, century. With conscious choices, it is possible to guide the outcome collectively, rather than simply allowing consequences to “happen” to us as individuals. Brightly colored banners around the exterior of the café with messages such as, “The Future is Us,” “The Future is You…” suggest this perspective. Though housing should be considered a basic, human right, all too often it becomes a game of speculation for those who can afford to play. The Destination Café is intended to serve as a catalyst for positive change, providing a site for both active engagement and quiet contemplation, where solutions might be discussed, shared, discovered and invented. Visit again in a few weeks for new discoveries.