MOTHER TONGUE

Mother Tongue (2025) is a documentary film and project that uses food to unlock personal narratives around matrilineal lineage and place. In September 2024, Mary Prescott invited five Twin Cities cultural workers — Kao Kalia Yang, Eyenga Bokamba, José A. Luis, Ifrah Mansour, and Kate Beane — to a potluck dinner to explore the deep connections between food, community, and family. Each guest brought a family dish, sharing the stories and cultural significance behind their recipes. This intimate gathering was captured and made into a short documentary film by Mary Prescott, which premiered at The Great Northern Festival 2025/Public Functionary, alongside an artist talkback and tastings of dishes from the film.

PRESS

MINNPOST: With ‘Mother Tongue,’ artist Mary Prescott will give her audience a taste of cultural narratives about food

Commissioned by The Great Northern Festival. In partnership with Public Functionary, Schubert Club and American Composers Forum.
This work is funded in part by MN Humanities Center with money from the Arts and Cultural Heritage Fund that was created with the vote of the people of Minnesota on November 4, 2008.
Mary Prescott is a fiscal year 2024 recipient of a Creative Individuals grant from the Minnesota State Arts Board. This activity is made possible by the voters of Minnesota through a grant from the Minnesota State Arts Board, thanks to a legislative appropriation from the arts and cultural heritage fund.
Development support provided by Loghaven Artist Residency.