CONVIVIUM : Food Systems at the Limit

This book explores how food production shapes landscapes, cities and everyday life. It uncovers the architecture of global food systems; from greenhouses and fishing ports to agricultural enterprises and feed-crop fields, it traces how architecture and territory respond to the pressures of industrialized food production.

CONVIVIUM: Food Systems at the Limit invites readers on a journey through the intricate networks that feed the world. It explores how food production shapes landscapes, cities and everyday life, uncovering the architecture of global food systems. From greenhouses and fishing ports to agricultural enterprises and feed-crop fields, it traces how architecture and territory respond to the pressures of industrialized food production. Through a rich interplay of essays, photography, and research, CONVIVIUM highlights the environmental, political, and social challenges that define what and how we eat. It asks pressing questions that link ecology and culture, science and design: How do tomatoes connect to salmon? What happens to soil after desertification? How do barns shape animal lives? And how does soy from Brazil end up feeding livestock in Europe? At the heart of this volume are twelve protagonists—tomato, strawberry, salmon, tropical fruits, cow, bull, octopus, carp, shrimp, soy, grains, and worm—each with its own story to tell. These characters guide readers through a complex web of trade routes, technologies, and labour. They reveal how food production is linked to climate change, migration, and the transformation of rural and urban spaces. By following these stories, CONVIVIUM exposes the hidden infrastructures, economic systems, and spatial consequences of industrial agriculture and global supply chains. Richly illustrated, the book combines analytical insight with visual storytelling. It invites readers to rethink the systems behind everyday meals—to see how food shapes the world we inhabit and to imagine more sustainable and equitable ways of living together. With contributions by Grace Abou Jaoude, Maximilian Atta, Andjelka Badnjar, Sepp Braun, Giulia Bruno, Jean-Marc Caimi, Neal Haddaway, Diego Inglez de Souza, Natalie Judkowsky, Nikos Katsikis, Andres Lepik, María D. López Rodríguez, Jan Müller, Víctor Muñoz Sanz, Sofia Nannini, Raj Patel, Valentina Piccinni, Olga Pindyuk, Stefan Pielmeier, Réka Rozsnyói, Tiago Saraiva, Gent Shehu, Katrin Schneider, Dániel Szalai, Amelie Steffen, Carolyn Steel, Rafael Sousa Santos, André Tavares, Mark Titley, José Luis Vicente Vicente, and Sinan von Stietencron.