MAD Symposium

The MAD Symposium was an annual symposium held in Copenhagen, Denmark featuring presentations from chefs, farmers, academics, thinkers, and artists. The event was hosted by the MAD Food Organization, founded in 2011 by Danish chef René Redzepi, the founder of the Copenhagen-based restaurant, Noma. The two-day symposium took place inside a circus tent along the waterfront of Refshaleøen. The audience for MAD consisted predominantly of chefs, aspiring cooks, farmers, journalists, and other food service professionals.

Philosophy

MAD's purpose was to educate and raise awareness among modern chefs and food professionals, to better prepare them for the challenges and responsibilities that went beyond merely providing sustenance for a single meal. The symposium aimed to feature speakers from diverse disciplines, offering different perspectives on food and culture while providing those in the kitchens with new knowledge and greater imagination.

Organization structure

MAD was a not-for-profit grassroots operation composed of a full-time team and collaborators spread throughout Europe, Australia, and the United States.[citation needed]

Main events

MAD4

The fourth MAD Symposium took place on 24th and 25th of August, 2014 and was co-curated by D.O.M. chef and founder Alex Atala.

  • Albert Adria — Chef, Spain
  • Alex Atala — Chef, Brazil
  • Anya von Bremzen — Journalist, Russia
  • Chris Cosentino— Chef, USA
  • Chris Ying — Journalist, USA
  • Christine Muhlke — Author, USA
  • Darina Allen — Chef, Ireland
  • Eric Schlosser— Journalist, USA
  • Eyvind Hellstrøm — Chef, Norway
  • Fulvio Pierangeli — Chef, Italy
  • Hervé This — Chemist, France
  • Isabel Soares— Activist, Portugal
  • Jeremiah Tower — Chef, USA
  • Julian Baggini — Philosopher, UK
  • Madhur Jaffrey — Author, UK
  • Olivier Roellinger — Chef, France
  • Paola Antonelli — Curator, USA
  • Paul Freedman — Historian, USA
  • Pierre Koffmann — Chef, UK/France
  • Ron Finley — Urban gardener, USA
  • Silvano Giraldin— Restaurant manager, UK
  • Tatiana Levha — Chef, France
  • Tatsuru Rai— Chef, Japan


MAD3

The third MAD took place on 25th and 26th August 2013, and was curated by Momofuku chef and founder David Chang and the editors of Lucky Peach magazine. The theme of the symposium was "guts."

MAD3 Speakers:

  • Alex Atala — Chef, Brazil
  • Vandana Shiva — Environmental Activist, India
  • Dario Cecchini — Butcher, Italy
  • Christian Puglisi — Chef, Denmark
  • Margot Henderson — Chef, United Kingdom
  • Sandor Katz — Fermentation Revivalist, USA
  • Jon Reiner — Author, USA
  • Pascal Barbot — Chef, France
  • Diana Kennedy — Author, Mexico/UK
  • Roy Choi — Chef, USA
  • Cynthia Sandberg & David Kinch — Farmer & Chef, USA
  • Heribert Watzke — Food Scientist, Switzerland
  • Martha Payne — Schoolgirl Activist, Scotland
  • Alain Ducasse — Chef, France
  • David Choe — Artist, USA
  • Josh Whiteland — Guide, Australia
  • Barbara Lynch — Chef, USA
  • Knud Romer — Author, Denmark
  • Daniel Klein & Mirra Fine — Activist Filmmakers, United States
  • Ahmed Jama — Chef, Somalia
  • Jonathan Gold — Writer, USA
  • Michael Twitty — Food Historian, USA
  • Jason Box — Glaciologist, USA/Denmark
  • Roland Rittman — Forager, Sweden



MAD2

The second MAD took place on the 1st and 2nd of July, 2012. The theme of the symposium was "appetite."

MAD2 Speakers:



MAD1

The inaugural MAD took place on 27th and 28th of August, 2011. The theme of the symposium was "vegetation."

MAD1 Speakers:



Other events

MAD Mondays

To prompt discussion on a local level and include those outside of the restaurant trade in the MAD community, the organization staged MAD Mondays, a series of panel discussions on food culture.

In March 2014, MAD hosted a New York City edition, its first outside of Copenhagen. The talk was titled "What We Talk About When We Talk About Being a Chef," and took place at the Drawing Center, featuring Peter Meehan as moderator and Mario Batali, Gabrielle Hamilton, Bill Buford, Lee Hanson, and Riad Nasr as panelists.

MADFeed

The MADFeed was an online publication that extended the MAD conversation throughout the year. The platform hosted news and video from MAD events, as well as articles from the MAD team. Notable guests and features in these publishings included chefs Dan Barber and Margot Henderson, musician James Murphy, and artist Olafur Eliasson.

References

  1. ↑ Jay, Cheshes (2013-09-20). "The Food World's G-20 -- At the annual MAD Symposium in Copenhagen, international tastemakers convene to eat, drink and be mindful". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 25 March 2014.
  2. ↑ "Food Snob". Archived from the original on 7 August 2013. Retrieved 2 September 2013.
  3. ↑ Howard, Chua-Eoan (2013-08-29). "No Guts, No Glory". Roads&Kingdoms. Retrieved 24 March 2014.[permanent dead link]
  4. ↑ Eater, Staff (2013-08-27). "Hangover Observations From the 2013 MAD Symposium". Eater. Retrieved 25 March 2014.[permanent dead link]
  5. ↑ "MAD Symposium – Copenhagen". A Magazine. 10 September 2012. Archived from the original on 27 September 2016. Retrieved 24 September 2016.
  6. ↑ Luciana, Bianchi (2011-07-21). "Rene Redzepi's MAD Food Camp". The World's 50 Best Restaurants. Retrieved 24 March 2014.
  7. ↑ Hilary, Dixler (2014-03-11). "Top 10 Quotes from MAD Panel on Defining the Chef". Eater. Retrieved 24 March 2014.