Canstruction LA Competes to Feed the Hungry

by Tashween Ali | Monday, January 7, 2013

HMC Architects and Buro Happold Engineers won the Structural Ingenuity Award in 2011. Photo by Tom Bonner.

In what marks the seventh-annual Canstruction LA design and build contest, six teams of architects, designers and engineers will use cans of food to generate donations for the Los Angeles Regional Food Bank. This year for the first time, the event will be presented as part of the Los Angeles Downtown Art Walk. The structures will be on display at the city’s Farmers and Merchants Bank Building on Thursday, January 10, 12pm-10pm, and on Friday, January 11, 11am-7pm.

The 20-year-old Canstruction non-profit hosts similar fundraising competitions in over 140 cities worldwide, and generated 15-million pounds in canned food donations last year.

“Take a Bite out of Hunger” by RTKL, winner of Jurors’ Favorite Award 2011. Photo by Tom Bonner.

“Canstruction LA was organized as a way for the design industries to contribute to the problem of hunger in Los Angeles County,” says Julie D. Taylor, Hon. AIA/LA, one of the original members of the Canstruction LA Steering Committee. “We have engaged some of the biggest names in architecture, construction, and engineering, who have consistently amazed us with their creativity and dedication to the cause,” she continues.

After the exhibit, all the cans will be donated to the Los Angeles Regional Food Bank. Rather than charging admission, Society for Design Administration, the organizer of Canstruction LA, encourages the public to donate to the Food Bank directly by texting FEEDLA to 80888 for a $10 donation.