Kristina Jacobsen

Kristina Jacobsen’s project “Three Miles an Hour” is a creative-ethnographic project that explores the cultural and emotional lives of service workers along Spain’s famed Camino de Santiago pilgrimage route. Drawing on participatory methods and ethnographic songwriting, this project involves co-writing original songs with hospitaleros, café owners, and baggage porters—those who make the pilgrim’s journey possible but are rarely centered in its narratives. By walking the Camino alongside these individuals, Jacobsen seeks to document the stories of labor, hospitality, and cultural exchange at the speed of the human body in motion—three miles an hour. The songs will be shared through public performance, podcasting, and a companion album. 

Additionally, she works on a project “Together at the table: Songs, food, and the story of cultural encounter.” This project brings together two of the most powerful vessels for cultural storytelling: music and food. It pairs six original songs inspired by real-life cultural encounters with a multi-course meal co-created with a professional chef. Each course corresponds to a song, drawing out themes of belonging, migration, memory, and hospitality. The performance unfolds as an immersive dining experience, engaging all the senses in dialogue. “Together at the Table” will be developed and premiered during the fellowship and is designed to tour internationally in community spaces, homes, and festivals.