Contents Cinematic Palate I Can Make Art & Eat it Too! For You Page: ThatGirlSuzzette Activity Page: Decorate This Cake Artisan Pottery Chronices of Dr Olive Comic For You page: Syasya M Unveil the Artist: The Boy Who Bakes In Retrospect of Pain in Paintings 03 05 07 08 09 11 12 13 15
I CAN MAKE ART AND EAT IT TOO! Written by ThatGirlSuzette | Designed by Syaza Hamani What if you could eat the Art you saw? Apicius, a Roman Gourmand from the 1st Century, coined the phrase “We Eat With Our Eyes First”. Food has to look and shine in a way that it is expected to be adorned with garnishment and presented in its optimal form so that we can feel that sense of wonder and enjoyment before tasting the food itself. With the many technological advancements in Food Science, it has brought Food into a whole new dimension. Making art in a way that can be shared and pun intended feasted on by many. There have been many artists that have created the most mystical things, none more famous than World Renowned Pastry Chef Amaury Guichon. While the name might not be familiar to many, the moment you lay eyes on his face and his creations, a hidden box in your mind will be unlocked and you will be accosted by the multiple short films where he creates beasts and ordinary everyday things with the use of chocolate, our very own Michelangelo, but instead of pizza, its CHOCOLATE! (and yes the famous sculptor from the Renaissance Era as well). The Artistry that goes into these sculptures that he creates shows that you can make most anything into art as long as you have the imagination to do so. However, he is not the only one we should keep our eyes on as we have Janice Wong, an artist and a chef known for her edible art and contemporary pastry. Creating amazing pieces such as the wearable chocolate for a fashion show and constructing edible installations. Often delivering fresh and surprising experiences, one notable art installation of her’s was “Roses in Reverie”, an edible art wall layered with chocolate roses and 500 chocolate bon bons arranged in a way to imitate the flowers. There were three different types of chocolate one can choose from: rosella rose, orange blossom and hazelnut pecan.
Let’s look to the past and think of what else we sculpted with that we ate as food? That’s right. SUGAR! Sugar sculpting has been around since ohhh I don't know 4000 BC by the people that inhibited Papua New Guinea, though research did show that in Egyptian Tombs there were Hieroglyphs that were said to have the very first recipe. Sugar sculptures depicted political or religious themes and would adorn tables of the wealthy. Today, they’re still held in high regard by many pastry chefs around the world. Decorating the most luxurious banquet halls and even getting featured in culinary competitions *cough* Reynold with his sugar bowl *cough*. These show-stopping pieces are constructed using a variety of mechanical methods because like chocolate sculpting, sugar sculpting has a lot to do with the science behind it, with how the crystals in the sugar react to certain temperatures and how to make sure the sugar doesn't crystallise when you shape them. That’s why sugar thermometers are a thing or additives such as acids and non-sucrose sugars are mixed in. They could be pulled, blown, cast, pastillage, pressed, rock or spun. In Chinese culture, sugar sculpting is considered a traditional art form where heated, liquid sugar is blown whilst agile fingers shape it into three-dimensional figures called " (sugar people)". Japan also have a similar tradition calling theirs " (Amezaiku)". One key difference between the two is 'the colour of their sugar. China’s sugar comes off as a brownish yellow colour and Japan’s sugar is white due to using “sarashi-ame '', where the candy is pulled and stretched many times to achieve that white colour. This would not be a food themed zine if we didn’t mention about the lunacy that is cake decoration and how far it has pushed the boundaries between reality and fiction. Cakes as we know can range from your basic single layer cakes to a multi-layered wedding cake but now we have reached a whole new peak, cakes so realistic it leaves you wondering if you’ve gone senile! With the hype of social media, these types of cakes have made it into their meme hall of fame where you ask Is it Cake? SideSerf Cake Studio run by Natalie and Dave are one of the pioneers of this amazing craziness. They have crafted many hyper-realistic cakes that fight against the rules of traditional cake artistry, captivating audiences with these creations. Anyone craving cake? Just me? Okay moving on. Food as an art form truly is a testament to the human mind and its creativity. aking even the most basic necessity of a human into a beautiful, elevated experience that makes you use not just your sense of taste and smell but also your sense of touch, sight and sound. The World of Art is ever transforming, breaking rule after rule, wall after wall, but just make sure that wall isn’t made of cake.
For You page Putting a creative spotlight on Spectrum’s very own
For You page Putting a creative spotlight on Spectrum’s very own Artwork by Syasya Muzani