Coffee - Sheep piss in a sunshine
Coffee - Sheep piss in a sunshine
Most of us are aquainted with coffee drinking, and some even from a young age. The first records of coffee in Iceland date back to 1703, but did not become widespread until the 19th century. At first, coffee was mainly drunken by the upper class as coffeebeans were quite expencive. It had become a custome to drink coffee at Althingi (the Icelandic parliament) by the end of the 18th century and about half a century later it was common to be see farmers drinking coffee all around the country. From there on the workday started to develop around coffee drinking.
Meeting over a cup of coffee became quite common in other corners of the world even though it made its way to Iceland relatively late. The first café is thought to have opened in Istanbul in 1544, and have they multiplied all over the world ever since. With coffee becoming more common and widespread, more utencils had to be kept and owned in kitchens all around; coffee kettles, pots, grinders and roasters became standard equipement in most households.
The exhibition Coffee – sheep piss in a sunshine explores the culture around coffee drinking and coffee making in Iceland. It examines the material culture around one home brewed cup of coffee, through artifacts preserved at the museum, the utensils a household had to bestow of to be able to process the coffee beans, grind, brew, drink and offer new and fresh coffee.
For the longest time, coffee beans were imported raw, but people roasted and ground them themselves at home. There was a lot of effort involved in processing the beans so that they could be used to pour coffee. Nowadays, it is much easier to get your hands on a fresh cup of coffee than it was in the early 18th century. By pressing one button, only a few seconds are spent waiting for a delicious sip of coffee at any time of the day.
The exhibition was open from the the 16th of March 2024 and until the 9th of June.
Myndir @Blik Stúdíó