The Plated Project: An Ongoing Initiative Fights Hunger with Artist-Designed Dishes

Falling at the intersection of art and activism, The Plated Project launched in 2019 with a simple idea: “You buy a plate. You fill a plate.” The ongoing initiative sells decorative, artist-designed dinnerware and donates 50 percent of the net profits to organizations combatting hunger. In the last two years alone, the project has involved hundreds of creatives—see the massive, eclectic collection ranging from abstract portraits to whimsical cityscapes on Instagram—totaling 500,000 meals provided to those in need. Every ceramic plate is released in limited-edition quantities, and you can shop the current offerings on the project’s site. For a similar initiative, check out the People’s Pottery Project, which supports prison abolition through a community art practice.