A research project and installation exploring the role of the worker in urban factory life and the production of things, with an opening reception on Friday, June 2 from 5-7 p.m. and a lecture by Nina Rappaport at 6 p.m. For more information, see the Slought website.

Slought is pleased to announce A Worker’s Lunch Box, a film installation exploring the role of the urban factory worker on display from June 2-July 21. The installation is part of an ongoing project by curator and urbanist Nina Rappaport, author of Vertical Urban Factory (Actar 2016).

The film project begins in Philadelphia, a city once known as the “Workshop of the World.” This provides an indelible backdrop for understanding the significance of factory life and factory workers during a period of manufacturing decline, while also showing a potential for its increase. The installation features a series of 18 filmed interviews with factory workers exploring the importance of work, the worker’s role in the factory, the value of work to the worker, and the meaning of urban production. By focusing attention on the individual factory employee, these personal narratives demonstrate first-hand the importance of urban production spaces and their social significance. A Worker’s Lunch Box builds upon over 10 years of research as well as the book and exhibition Vertical Urban Factory (2011-), which focuses on the architecture and urbanism of the factory and the importance of returning manufacturing to cities in a new sustainable paradigm.