MOFAD Making the Nation’s Table Digital Experience

Client

MOFAD

Location

New York, NY

Year Complete

2021

Website

mofad.org

Industry

Non-Profit

Services

Digital

Strategy

Creative

Keeping the Story Alive

Museums are built around shared experiences. In 2020, those experiences suddenly disappeared. As the COVID-19 pandemic forced museums across the country to close their doors, the Museum of Food and Drink faced a defining moment. The organization needed to keep its community engaged, sustain critical fundraising efforts, and prepare for the launch of its most ambitious exhibition to date, AFRICAN/AMERICAN: Making the Nation's Table.

The question wasn't simply how to move online. It was how to preserve a cultural experience when people could no longer experience it in person.

Tantrum Agency fundraising communications for MOFAD Making the Nation’s Table shown through campaign materials

Beyond the Museum Walls

Working within MOFAD's existing brand system, Tantrum developed a flexible communications platform that supported donor outreach, direct mail, email campaigns, and digital storytelling. Every touchpoint reinforced the museum's mission while helping maintain meaningful relationships with members, supporters, and prospective donors during an unprecedented period of uncertainty.

Tantrum Agency digital and donor communications for MOFAD’s AFRICAN/AMERICAN exhibition

Museum of food and drink

“The stories have been oppressed, hidden and forgotten. I think that is what we are interested in uncovering.”

Nazli Parvizi

President • MOFAD

MOFAD AFRICAN/AMERICAN exhibition photography featuring the Making the Nation’s Table experience

Mapping the Nation's Table

To extend the exhibition beyond the gallery, we created Mapping the Nation's Table: African American Legacy Foodways, an interactive digital experience celebrating the people who have shaped American cuisine across generations.

The map highlighted both legacy restaurants that have served their communities for more than fifty years and contemporary Black-owned restaurants continuing that tradition today. By placing established institutions alongside emerging voices, the experience demonstrated that African American culinary influence isn't confined to history. It's still being written.

A Living Legacy

While AFRICAN/AMERICAN: Making the Nation's Table explored the profound influence of Black foodways on American culture, Mapping the Nation's Table invited visitors to participate in that story. The digital experience complemented the exhibition's centerpiece, the monumental Legacy Quilt, reinforcing the idea that every restaurant, every family recipe, and every culinary innovator contributes another thread to America's shared table.

MOFAD Mapping the Nation’s Table interactive experience by Tantrum Agency displayed on a tablet

Museum of food and drink

“Now is the time to celebrate, savor, and remember that African American food is American food.”

Dr. Jessica B. Harris

Lead Curator • MOFAD

A Community Helped Bring It to Life

Through Kickstarter, 782 backers pledged $156,405 to support the country’s first major exhibition dedicated to the Black chefs, farmers, producers, and innovators who shaped American food culture. Their support helped turn an ambitious idea into something tangible.

When the exhibition finally opened in 2022, it carried that momentum with it. The digital work had kept the story moving while the museum’s doors were closed, expanding access, strengthening the connection with supporters, and helping build anticipation for the day visitors could experience it in person. What began with a community rallying behind the vision became a long-awaited return to the gallery.

Tantrum Agency donor and campaign materials for MOFAD Making the Nation’s Table

Tantrum Agency MOFAD communications supporting the AFRICAN/AMERICAN exhibition and fundraising campaign

Tantrum Agency physical and digital storytelling for MOFAD celebrating African American culinary history

MOFAD team supporting the Making the Nation’s Table exhibition and digital experience by Tantrum Agency

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