Minerva Cuevas’ Famine 3.6 is a machine that melts and drips chocolate every 3.6 seconds, echoing the global famine mortality rate. Over the duration of the exhibition, the flowing chocolate, resembling oil or blood, gradually forms a sculpture on the gallery floor, conjuring an image reminiscent of waste or excrement. By centering chocolate, the artist makes apparent the stark contrast between the hunger experienced by remaindered populations and the overindulgence of the privileged, while also underscoring the deadly consequences of the capitalist economic system.

Often perceived as an innocent treat, chocolate possesses a deep cultural significance and a complex history intertwined with the cocoa trade. Produced from the seeds of tropical cacao trees native to the rainforest of Central and South America, chocolate was long considered the “food of the gods,” and even used in its unprocessed form, cacao, as currency in the pre-Hispanic era. It was only with the arrival of the Spanish friars and conquistadors that chocolate became a delicacy reserved for the elite. This historical trajectory engages with a range of difficult themes including European colonialism, extractivist capitalism, and the ongoing exploitations of Latin America by the West. Moreover, the area where the majority of cacao production occurs is also notable for another natural resource: oil. As economic pressures persist in shaping the social and economic landscape of the region, agricultural workers are increasingly forced to abandon their fields and work in the hydrocarbon industry.