Maria Finn is an author, journalist and multi-sensory storyteller who lives on a houseboat in Sausalito, California. She is ocean obsessed and this theme runs through much of her undertakings, from food events to wildcrafting and writing projects. She used to work in the commercial fishing industry in Alaska, including crewing on all female fishing boat, her tv pilot loosely based on this experience, Sea Legs & Fish Nets, has been optioned and is represented by Intellectual Property Group. She's the author of five books, with more in the works. Her memoir, "Hold Me Tight and Tango Me Home" was optioned by Fox Studios for a television series.
She recently adopted a Lagotto Romagnolo, or Italian truffle dog, Flora Jayne, and they have been training to hunt truffles. She's also hosting wild food camps to teach people how to find edible mushrooms and cook them over live fire. Seaweed and seafood focused Wild Food Camps are scheduled for the spring and summer. Sign up for her monthly newsletter, Flora & Fungi Adventures, below to learn about upcoming events. She has told stories for The Moth Mainstage at the Museo del Barrio in New York City and the Castro Theater in San Francisco, along with the Eat Real Festival at Jack London Square in Oakland, and at the Fisher Poets Gathering in Astoria, Oregon. She has given talks at the SOCAP Conference, Seattle Chefs Collaborative, the California Academy of Sciences, SXSW eco among many other places. Usually she is asked to speak about seafood, but sometimes about gardening edibles or why everyone should dance more. She's currently a fellow in the creative cohort in the Design Science Studio and Living Systems Collaboratory, as part of the Buckminister Fuller Society. She created an augmented reality menu that expresses her lockdown experience. It's online now as a website, Pandemic Menu from Spaceship Earth. It tells the stories of ecosystems - and how humans are an integral part of them. She also launched a series of Wild Food Adventures, Flora & Fungi. She was an Artist-in-Residence at Autodesk, Pier 9 maker space. You can read about her project there at Fast Company or Food Tank. Other recent residencies include Writing Between the Vines, The Marin Headlands Center for the Arts and Mesa Refuge. She was chef-in-residence for Stochastic Labs, a residency for artists, scientists and tech innovators. She plans and executes private dining events and food pop-ups with a focus on regenerative foods and engagement with the natural world. Visit her website Honeycomb for more information. If you enjoy cat photos, join her on Facebook where she can't resist posting pictures of her grey tabbies, Spike and Ariel, and of course, Flora Jayne. If you are interested in ocean issues, follow her on Twitter. For food and houseboat living, follow her on Instagram. |
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