Inside WOAH’s Artist Table Dinner Collaboration With Carrie Mae Weems and Chef Tara Thomas

“Isn’t it so nice it’s spring?”

Early on Wednesday evening, Michi Jigarjian was admiring the light filtering into the dining room at the Edition hotel’s Clocktower restaurant. The U-shaped table was set for an intimate group with lush arrangements of pastel flowers, the first hint of the evening’s collaborative dinner between artist Carrie Mae Weems and chef Tara Thomas.

“ I love the serendipitous moments like this, where the light hits through the window, and it’s right near the petal of the flower,” said Jigarjian, cofounder of Work of Art Holdings (WOAH). “It’s Carrie Mae’s magic.”

On Wednesday night WOAH hosted, with Audi, a spring edition of their Artists Table dinner series that pairs visual artists and chefs.

Thomas worked in tandem with Weems to reflect her work through a culinary experience, informed by the artist’s body of work “May Days Long Forgotten.”

“Reflecting on the body of her work around May Day, today being the eve of May Day, it felt like a moment to really focus on what is to come for the year, and how can we set more intentions through this dining experience,” said Thomas. One course, a plate of colorful root vegetables served in a grid of cubes, paid homage to Weems’ “Untitled (Colored People Grid).”

“She’s not afraid to dream, not afraid to think literally sky high,” added Thomas of getting to work with Weems. “I’ve really loved Carrie Mae for a long time. I actually had some of her body of work on my Tumblr as a teenager — so it felt like a manifestation in a way.”

“When we introduced her to Tara Thomas, a rising star in the culinary space, they just hit it off,” said WOAH’s Isolde Brielmaier. “They started vibing on different ideas. Turns out they’re both from Portland. They had all of these different synergies and points of connection. It really sort of flourished and blossomed.”

Artists Table, a franchise of WOAH, was created with the intention of highlighting synergies between art and other creative fields.

“It’s really about bringing people together,” said Brielmaier. “There’s a whole theme of ‘a recipe for love.’ And I think at this moment in particular, it’s really special.”

During cocktail hour, artists Jose Parla and Kaws played pool near the bar, while in the main dining room, Brielmaier was busy introducing Weems to actor Daniel Kaluuya, who was seated next to Lupita Nyong’o for dinner.

The event’s partners included nonprofit One Love Community Fridge, which provides fresh, healthy food to communities around the city, and car brand Audi, which provided rides for attendees. Music in the cars was courtesy of Dave Guy’s album “Ruby,” which features cover artwork by Derrick Adams; both men were at the table on Wednesday night.

A slab of butter printed with the word “listen” greeted each guest as they took their seats, where they found more words waiting for them — live, listen, learn, love — underneath the title of “A recipe for love.” During dinner, Weems invited everyone to jot down their own “recipe for love” onto a card and tie it onto a wishing tree in the room.

“ A few years ago, I kept asking myself this question: what is love?” said Weems, addressing the room as she shared childhood memories of May Day picnics at the park with family. Thinking about May Day led her to think about clouds (reflected in the table runners), flowers (the centerpiece of the tables), and food (intentionally themed, courtesy of Thomas.)

“And I started thinking about this idea of the recipe of love, this moment when there is so much hatred in the world, so much division in the world,” Weems added, ultimately describing love as a “site of illumination.” “And I thought, well, if I listen — If I listen and I learn and linger, then maybe something is there, that I can hold onto.”