Shoppers at North Star Mall will soon see a striking sight: towering sculptures made entirely of canned food. Over the next two weeks, seven San Antonio teams from architecture, engineering and construction will display their creations as part of the 19th annual CANstruction event.
Local teams join forces for a charitable cause
The participating groups—Ford, Powell & Carson, HDR & Joeris, Luna Architecture, RVK Architecture, San Antonio College, Merrick & Co., and the Southwest Research Institute—have combined roughly 30,000 cans to build larger‑than‑life works of art. Each can used in the competition will be donated to the San Antonio Food Bank once the event concludes.
“It’s a huge thing,” said Molly Padilla of RVK Architecture. “I love doing it because there’s so many people that love to come together and be involved in something like this.”
Raising awareness of food insecurity
The event is designed to shine a light on the scale of hunger in the San Antonio community. Cindy Delgado, committee chair for the Society for Design Administration, explained that the size of the sculptures helps people grasp the magnitude of the need. “Some of these are very large, and it brings it home to them, the need,” Delgado said. “We’ve got a structure here of probably about 7,000 cans and wow, somebody thought we needed that many cans and that’s just the tip of the iceberg.”
Over the past 18 years, CANstruction organizers report that more than 600,000 pounds of food have been donated to the San Antonio Food Bank through the event.
Community support and fundraising
In addition to the food donations, the event has become a fundraising engine for local charities. “We’ve raised a lot of money to do this, and we are so thankful to everybody who has given and provided,” Padilla added.
Visitors to North Star Mall can view the sculptures through September 26 and cast votes for their favorite designs by scanning QR codes placed throughout the mall. The winning San Antonio team will advance to the International CANstruction Competition, representing the city on a global stage.
How you can help
Shoppers are encouraged to support the effort by voting, donating additional canned goods, or contributing financially through the event’s online portal. Every contribution helps the San Antonio Food Bank meet the growing demand for food assistance in the region.
The CANstruction event underscores the power of local collaboration—architects, engineers, students and businesses working side by side to address a pressing humanitarian need. As the sculptures stand tall in the mall’s atrium, they serve as a visual reminder that when the community unites, it can make a real difference in the fight against hunger.
Original reporting: San Antonio, TX News (HLL/CB) — read the source article.
