The New Jersey Chapter of the American Institute of Architects and their local AIA Newark and Suburban section announce that CANstruction’s annual design exhibition to benefit local food bank programs will be on display from Oct. 27 through Nov. 7 at the Morris Museum, in Morristown.

The event is part of a national program that calls upon teams of architects and design professionals to envision and build creative structures made entirely of canned food. The CANstruction theme for this year is “Favorite Video Games.” This is chance for the teams to share and remember their best and preferred games and show off their creativity and awe-inspiring sculptures in a fun and rewarding challenge.

The inventive structures will be built on Friday, Oct.26,  in an eight-hour “hands-on” build day and will remain on display until Nov. 7  The design, construction ability and creativity for all teams will be recognized and acknowledged in an award ceremony for competition in various categories such as Honorable Mention, Best Meal, Best Use of Labels, Structural Ingenuity, Best Original Design, People’s Choice and Most Cans Used. Once the structures are ‘deconstructed’ the cans are donated to the Community Food Bank of New Jersey for distribution to various community food bank programs.   The Community Food Bank of New Jersey is a member of ‘Feeding America,’ a nationwide network of more than 200 food banks, which has been fighting poverty and hunger for more than 30 years, distributing nearly 45 million pounds of food annually, reaching more than one million hungry N.J. residents. The distribution recipients include pantries, soup kitchens, programs for children and the elderly and shelters. Last year’s event was able to contribute 18,291 lbs. of food and a monetary contribution of $10,100 with the help of the participants and all generous sponsors.

This year’s event will also invite the public to donate cans at the sculpture location. A collection point will be located near the sculptures, inviting guests to leave canned food donations during their visit.  

CANstruction, Inc. is a non-profit organization that coordinates annual design and build competitions in a way that combines the creative thinking of the design and construction industry with a community service initiative. To learn more about CANstruction, visit http://www.canstruction.org.