News
May 8, 202413th Annual Canstruction Helps Feed the Hungry; Colossal Sculptures on Display at Crossgates Mall – May 7-19, 2024
At the 13th annual Capital Region CANstruction design/build competition, talented teams of architects, designers, builders, and engineers will join forces to create innovative and gravity-defying structures embodying the theme, “Dream STEAM!” The structures will be made entirely of canned food, instead of bricks, stone, glass, and other traditional building materials. Structures are comprised of an average of 4,000 cans. Benefitting The Food Pantries for the Capital District, these structures will be on display at Crossgates Mall from May 7 – May 19, 2024. This will be the second year the event is being hosted at Crossgates Mall.
The 10 participating teams include AOW Associates with Envision Architects, CSArch, Exyte, Hyman Hayes Associates with Greco Construction, kW Mission Critical Engineering, Labella, MJ Engineering & Surveying, Mosaic Associates, Ryan Biggs Clark Davis Engineering & Surveying, and Stantec. An additional structure will be part of the exhibit and will be constructed by Girl Scouts from the Girl Scouts of Northeastern New York in support of Girls CAN Do, an annual program the scouts participate in that encourages not only STEM, but service to their community. All “building materials” used in the displays were purchased with generous support from Price Chopper/Market 32, the presenting sponsor, and will be donated to The Food Pantries for the Capital District, a coalition of more than 70 food pantries in Albany, Rensselaer, Saratoga, and Schenectady Counties, at the end of CANstruction.
Visitors are encouraged to bring canned goods (tuna, beans, canned vegetables, soups/chilis, and fruit) to Crossgates Mall and participate in the CANstruction competition and food drive. Visitors can use their canned goods as ballots to vote for the winner of the People’s Choice award. Donation receptacles will be stationed at each structure. A jury of designers, local business owners, and local dignitaries will also judge the structures. Awards include Best Original Design, Best Meal, Best Use of Labels, and Structural Ingenuity. Additional awards include Largest Cash Donation and Best Signage. Along with juried prizes, a People’s Choice Award will be bestowed on the structure that gains the most votes (most food donations) from visitors. Last year nearly 3,000 cans were collected from the public.
Pam Cerone, Director of Community Relations for Price Chopper/Market 32 says, “CANstruction is a creative, scientific, unique way to bring attention to nutrition insecurity in our community and provides essential sustenance at a time when food pantries are in greatest need. Price Chopper and Market 32 have proudly supported this event for over a decade, and we look forward to seeing the 2024 canstructures.”
Jennifer Smith, Marketing Director at Crossgates Mall remarked, “Crossgates is proud to host the Capital Region CANstruction event again this year. Guests truly love seeing the event set up in the center’s common area, while also being able to help such a tremendous cause. We are grateful that our faithful Crossgates shoppers love to give back. We’re honored and excited to be a part of this event and can’t wait to see the structures take shape again within our center.”
“Our theme this year is Dream STEAM. Leonardo daVinci said, “to develop a complete mind: study the science, study the art of science. Learn how to see. Realize that everything connects to everything else.” Be prepared to see 11 incredible CANstructures that represent Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, and Mathematics. This community-building event provides invaluable support to the food insecure in the Capital Region, while also showcasing the deep expertise and unlimited creativity of local design firms and contractors,” said Jill Shorter, Capital Region CANstruction President and Director of Marketing at Ryan Biggs Clark Davis. “We are excited to showcase our exhibit at Crossgates again this year. Our creative and passionate teams have created an inspiring edible art exhibit by implementing the engineering principles they use to design our most essential facilities and infrastructure. After two weeks, these colossal structures will be deCANstructed and thousands of canned food items will be donated back to the local community. We invite all visitors to Crossgates to bring canned goods to vote for People’s Choice to further increase the donation we provide to The Food Pantries because together we CAN make a difference.”
Natasha Pernicka, Executive Director of The Food Pantries for the Capital District said, “The Food Pantries is incredibly grateful for the support from the design community. CANstruction heightens awareness of the ever-present need to support those who are food insecure in our community. Since 1979, The Food Pantries has been feeding the hungry. Member pantries provide enough groceries for a minimum of 3 meals per day, for at least 3 days per week, for each person in the household. Last year, enough food was distributed for more than 4 million meals and this year we continue to see increased community need.”
