Canstruction New York filled the Winter Garden at Brookfield Place with canned-food architecture from October 31 through November 11, 2024. For the competition's 32nd annual edition, 25 teams from architecture, engineering, and design firms built large sculptures from unopened cans that were later donated to City Harvest.
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YouTube: Building With Cans at Brookfield Place
Instagram: Canstruction's 2024 Sculptures
What to Know
Twenty-Five Teams Competed
Architecture, engineering, and construction firms assembled the 2024 field. Their entries required graphic clarity, structural planning, and a careful accounting of every can used in the final work.
Food Was the Building Material
Teams could use unopened canned goods but had to keep them suitable for donation. Labels supplied color and pattern, while the cylindrical containers imposed practical limits on balance, curves, and unsupported spans.
Design Served a Food-Rescue Mission
After the exhibition, the cans were dismantled and donated to City Harvest. Visitors could also contribute canned food, turning the public display into an active collection point.
The Build Was Visible
DeSimone presented a live build on October 31, allowing visitors to see the preparation concealed by a finished sculpture. Worksheets and guided tours gave children and other visitors additional ways to read the designs.
Judges Looked Beyond Appearance
Awards considered original design, use of labels, structural ingenuity, meal value, and total cans. A People's Choice vote gave the public a separate voice alongside the professional jury.
A Long New York Tradition
Canstruction New York began in 1993 and developed into an annual meeting of design culture and hunger relief. City Harvest's program archive explains the enduring model: build, exhibit, dismantle, and donate.