“The Lexicon of Sustainability,” a pop-up art show which features both new and old techniques for sustainable food growth, made a stop at How on Earth on Thursday night.

“It is a really creative way to introduce many people to sustainable food growth,” said event coordinator Scott Gallant. “Farming is thought of as very traditional, but there are hundreds of different ways to grow food.”

The exhibit shows photo collages meshed with text that demonstrate how sustainable farming is done. It demonstrates classic techniques as well as brand new ideas. The artwork, done by Douglas Gayeton, has been making its way around the country.

The idea of The Lexicon of Sustainability was perhaps expressed best on one of the pieces of art labeled “Community Supported Agriculture”: “Our goal is not to grow food for the whole world. It’s to grow really good food for 175 families.”

Gallant described how the exhibit demonstrated different sustainable farming techniques. Although some of them are things people have already known about, such as grass feeding, the techniques are described in depth so that everyone can learn a little more about where their food comes from.

“People who already know a lot about where food comes from have a tendency to see only the negative,” Gallant said in reference to the widening knowledge of factory farming and other large-scale food processing techniques and their downsides. “This [exhibit] introduces new knowledge of growing food in a fun and interesting way.”

“I stumbled upon the project online,” Gallant said. “They immediately accepted me and then I didn’t hear from them again until three weeks ago.”

Also hosting the project locally will the the Marion Institute's Connecting for Change Conference. That gathering, scheduled for New Bedford Oct. 21-23, annual attracts between 2,000 and 3,000 people from all over the world.

At How on Earth, the crowd mingled and sampled the free appetizers which ranged from  butternut squash and local apple chips to homemade doughnuts and pasta sauces.

Jennifer Joslin, who makes and sells the pasta sauce “Summit 6,” not only attended the event, but also handed out samples of both her mild and spicy sauces.

“I started making the sauce as a way to get my kids to eat vegetables,” she said. (The sauces feature six different vegetables.) “Now they are available in 25 different stores.”

Joslin described how events like the one on Thursday night help promote the product and, in doing so, help the small business owners and local products flourish.

The crowd was able to try out these local products and learn about the sustainable food industry, while listening to music by Neal McCarthy.

“I hope sustainable food growth catches on,” attendee Chris Swanson said. “It used to be like that. There was a time when you would eat a hamburger and there wouldn’t be 10 cows in it.”