26. An invitation to food design
Mon Dec 22 2025
Marije Vogelzang sits down with host Adam Fromme in this episode of the Thinking through Design podcast.
“When you’re designing with food you don’t just design the object, but you design an experience that causes a lot of emotions, memories, associations to happen inside people’s brains.” Marjie Vogelzang
This episode dives into the world of food design with guest Marije Vogelzang, an international designer reshaping how we understand and experience food. Rather than focusing on taste or culinary trends, Vogel explores food as a powerful emotional and psychological connector. Food is something capable of triggering memory, shaping identity and fostering shared experiences. Through examples ranging from Alzheimer’s projects to the Hunger Winter of WWII, she shows how storytelling, narrative and the sensory qualities of food can unlock deeply personal histories and create meaningful human connection. The discussion stretches beyond cuisine and into the blurred lines between art, design, culture and psychology, inviting listeners to reconsider the ordinary act of eating as a rich, imaginative and transformative design experience.
Marije Vogelzang is a pioneering Dutch food designer whose career has reshaped how the world understands the relationship between food, memory, culture and human experience. Trained in product design at the Design Academy Eindhoven, Vogelzang quickly moved beyond traditional culinary boundaries, founding experimental food projects and later establishing the Dutch Institute of Food & Design. Her practice centers on food as a storytelling medium—an intimate material capable of unlocking emotion, triggering memory and fostering social connection. For more than two decades, she has created immersive dining events, therapeutic memory projects and public installations that challenge assumptions about taste, culture and identity. Vogelzang lectures and exhibits internationally, and her influence has helped establish food design as a distinct discipline within contemporary design practice.
Marjie recorded this episode during his week on campus as part of the annual Ohio State DESIGN Butter Goeller Design Affair.
You can also listen to this episode on Apple Podcasts.
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Marije Vogelzang sits down with host Adam Fromme in this episode of the Thinking through Design podcast. “When you’re designing with food you don’t just design the object, but you design an experience that causes a lot of emotions, memories, associations to happen inside people’s brains.” Marjie Vogelzang This episode dives into the world of food design with guest Marije Vogelzang, an international designer reshaping how we understand and experience food. Rather than focusing on taste or culinary trends, Vogel explores food as a powerful emotional and psychological connector. Food is something capable of triggering memory, shaping identity and fostering shared experiences. Through examples ranging from Alzheimer’s projects to the Hunger Winter of WWII, she shows how storytelling, narrative and the sensory qualities of food can unlock deeply personal histories and create meaningful human connection. The discussion stretches beyond cuisine and into the blurred lines between art, design, culture and psychology, inviting listeners to reconsider the ordinary act of eating as a rich, imaginative and transformative design experience. Marije Vogelzang is a pioneering Dutch food designer whose career has reshaped how the world understands the relationship between food, memory, culture and human experience. Trained in product design at the Design Academy Eindhoven, Vogelzang quickly moved beyond traditional culinary boundaries, founding experimental food projects and later establishing the Dutch Institute of Food & Design. Her practice centers on food as a storytelling medium—an intimate material capable of unlocking emotion, triggering memory and fostering social connection. For more than two decades, she has created immersive dining events, therapeutic memory projects and public installations that challenge assumptions about taste, culture and identity. Vogelzang lectures and exhibits internationally, and her influence has helped establish food design as a distinct discipline within contemporary design practice. Marjie recorded this episode during his week on campus as part of the annual Ohio State DESIGN Butter Goeller Design Affair. You can also listen to this episode on Apple Podcasts.