Blending themes from the current exhibitions Common Ground and On The National Language: The Poetry of America’s Native Tongues, the Skirball Cultural Center is honored to invite you to a special Common Ground dinner that celebrates Indigenous resilience, food traditions, and the deep connection between culture, language, and the land. 

This unique culinary experience will feature a pre-colonial, Indigenous plant-based menu which highlights the rich diversity of Indigenous foods, increases visibility of Indigenous histories, and promotes the use of traditional ingredients. Co-curated by food anthropologist and scholars Dr. Claudia Serrato and Dr. Scott Alves Barton, this meal will offer a unique opportunity to reflect on our relationship with the earth, striving to become better stewards of the land.

The evening will also include conversations about food, culture, health, indigeneity, and decolonization, offering valuable insights into the rich cultural practices that sustain Indigenous communities.

Dr. Scott Alves Barton is a foodways scholar with a twenty-five–year career as an executive chef, consultant, and culinary educator. He holds a PhD in food studies from New York University and is a cultural anthropologist of African diaspora foodways at the University of Notre Dame. 

His research, films, and publications focus on the intersection of secular and sacred cuisine as a marker of identity politics, feminine agency, cultural heritage, political resistance, and self-determination in Northeastern Brazil. 

During his professional culinary career, Dr. Barton was named one of the top twenty-five best African/African American chefs by Ebony magazine. He is on the board of the Association for the Study of Food and Society, the Society for the Anthropology of Food and Nutrition, and the African Diaspora Religions Committee of the American Academy of Religion. He is also a member of the James Beard Foundation Cookbook Awards committee and an advisor to the Indigo Arts Alliance. Dr. Barton has been a fellow at the Instituto Sacatar, the Fundação Palmares in Brazil, the Institute for Critical Investigation at Vanderbilt University, the Tepoztlán Institute for Transnational History of the Americas, and is an ongoing fellow at Lynden Sculpture Garden in Milwaukee.

Dr. Claudia Serrato (P’urhépecha/Zacateca) is a distinguished culinary anthropologist, chef, and educator with expertise in Indigenous foods and traditions. Renowned for her advocacy of food sovereignty and contributions to preserving Indigenous foodways, Dr. Serrato integrates scholarly research with practical culinary work to activate ancestral taste memory. Holding a Ph.D. in sociocultural anthropology from the University of Washington, she has been featured in various media outlets, including television, radio, and podcasts. Dr. Serrato co-founded “Across Our Kitchen Tables,” supporting women of color in food projects, and teaches at California State University, Pomona and Dominguez Hills. Her approach blends academic insight with hands-on practice, fostering a deep appreciation for the cultural significance of Indigenous foods. Based in Los Angeles, she elevates Indigenous culinary arts through workshops, cooking classes, and speaking engagements, making her a leading voice in Native food justice.