The M&S Company Archive contains thousands of food-related objects, from packaging and adverts to technical documents and scientific research. These objects can spark memories and inspire conversations about how we shop, what we eat and our food habits.

Our temporary exhibition celebrates two projects that look at the role food plays in older people’s lives.

My Life of Food – A project by the University of York

18 adults, all aged over 60 documented their everyday food practices with cameras. The photographs they took document their relationship with food, from shopping to family meal times. The exhibition explores how the participants’ habits might have changed in light of their changing life circumstances.

Sparking Memories: What We Ate

Residents from Simon Marks Court Care Home discovered food related objects in the archive, then working with two artists created an artwork inspired by what they found. Each week the group learned a different creative process from printing to needlework. The outcome was a tactile tablecloth which will be used by the care home during activity sessions.

This temporary exhibition runs until 28th June 2019.