Hungry For Art? Sandwiches As An Homage To Modern & Contemporary Artists.

above: The Piet Mondrian Sandwich by Brittany Powell

Brittany Powell's project, Sandwich Art, turns the classic sammy into interpretations of pieces by famous modern and contemporary artists. From Marcel Duchamp to Damian Hirst, cheese, lettuce and condiments are the medium and the bread is the canvas.

Below the image of each open faced masterpiece is a link to the artist whose work it is referencing.

The Hirst Sandwich:

Damien Hirst

Jasper Johns Sandwich:

Jasper Johns

The Klimt Sandwich:

Gustav Klimt

The O'Keeffe Sandwich:

Georgia O'Keeffe

The Pollock Sandwich:

Jackson Pollock

The Rothko Sandwich:

Mark Rothko

Marcel Duchamp Sandwich:

inspired by this piece of art

The Christo Sandwich:

Christo

Artist and designer Brittany Powell, along with Tae Kitakata, who both attended California College of The Arts, have collaborated on many projects and together alternate sharing their work on their site, low commitment projects.

Via Taxi via booooooom via Swiss-Miss (none of whom showed all of the sandwiches)

If you enjoyed that, you'll like this:


Modern Art Placemats That Turn Fine Art Into Food.

Mouth Watering Gift Wrap. Conceptual Wrapping Paper from Gift Couture.

Sarah Fey and Justin Colt, New York graphic designers and graduates of Penn State University, have conceived of a new way to make your gifts even more desirable.

They've begun a start-up company named Gift Couture that offers coordinated wrapping paper lines, each featuring a unique and original concept. Their introductory design is truly a tasty one.



The Cheeseburger set they chose as the initial project includes 5 different wrapping paper designs; a bun, hamburger, cheese, lettuce, and tomatoes, all of the components of a Cheeseburger.





Each complete set of Cheeseburger wrapping paper will be packaged and include the following:
2 - 27" x 40" Sheets of Bun
1 - 27" x 40" Sheet of Hamburger
1 - 27" x 40" Sheet of Cheese
1 - 27" x 40" Sheet of Lettuce
1 - 27" x 40" Sheet of Tomatoes

In order to get this project and Gift Couture off the ground, they are asking for pre-order funding via kickstarter. This will encourage and enable them to release additional coordinated sets, which will be available online and through retail partners.

Everyone who contributes to their project will be featured on a special contributors section of the upcoming official Gift Couture website. They are also offering individual wrapping paper sheets or complete sets, and their highest backers will each receive one of their hand-made golden cheeseburger trophies (shown below) as a sign of their appreciation!



Order your Cheeseburger gift wrap set and help Sarah and Justin to launch Gift Couture here.

Finger Lickin' Landscapes. Photos of Edible Environments by Carl Warner.

Photographer Carl Warner creates miniature worlds crafted entirely of food, textiles or other objects and then photographs them. Today I want to share with you his Foodscapes, as he calls them. Meat mountains, broccoli trees, cabbage seas, chocolate rivers and cereal leaves are just some of the fun elements in the dioramas. Made with most things edible, the landscapes and buildings have obvious commercial applications, but some are just as appetizing to gaze upon. He even sells photographic prints of them (links to purchase the prints, a book and the new wall calendar are at the end of this post).

About creating his Foodscapes, Carl says:
The ‘Foodscapes’ are created in Carl’s London studio where they are built on top of a large purpose built triangular table top. The scenes are photographed in layers from foreground to background and sky as the process is very time consuming and so the food quickly wilts under the lights. Each element is then put together in post production to achieve the final image.

“Although I’m very hands on with my work, I do use model makers and food stylists to help me create the sets. I tend to start with a drawing which I sketch out in order to get the composition worked out, this acts as a blue print for the team to work to.”

Once the drawing is agreed upon, Carl then works out what each part of the scene will be made from, and working with his food stylist they together determine the best ingredients to work with in order to achieve his aims.

“I tend to draw a very conventional landscape using classic compositional techniques as I need to fool the viewer into thinking it is a real scene at first glance, it is the realisation that the scene is in fact made of food that brings a smile that brings a smile to the viewer, and for me that’s the best part”

Having worked for many years as a photographer bringing ideas to life for advertising agencies Carl became very experienced in lighting, and especially the recreation of natural looking light using a combination of tungsten and flash lighting equipment.

“I’ve always enjoyed the discipline of working in the studio, and the spontaneity of working outdoors in natural light, as you never know what you’re going to get. With my ‘Foodscapes’ I can now put together the knowledge of natural light with the control of recreating it in the studio in order to bring out the colours and textures as well as the beauty of a scene”

These images can take up to two or three days to build and photograph and then a couple of days retouching and fine tuning the images to blend all the elements together. Carl spends a lot of time planning each image before shooting in order to choose the best ingredients to replicate larger scale shapes and forms within nature, so he spends a lot of time staring at vegetables in supermarkets which makes him seem a little odd! However, he is careful to point out that finding the right shaped broccoli to use as a tree is an all important task.

“Although there is a fair amount of waste, there is a lot of food left over which is always shared out with the team, though most of the food used in the sets have either been super glued or pinned and none of this makes for good eating!”

About Carl:

Born in Liverpool, 1963 Carl has spent most of his life drawing and taking pictures. He has worked mainly in the advertising industry for the past twenty years, based at his London studio, and now lives with his long suffering wife and four children in the Kent countryside.




A book of his Food Landscapes was published last year and shows 'behind the scenes' pictures of Carl at work as well as descriptions in his own words of how they were inspired and created. And a new 2012 Wall Calendar featuring his Foodscapes is also available.



You can buy prints of some of his amazing Foodscapes here.

See all of his various types of photography at his website

Noble Handcrafted Tonics. Syrups And Vinegars That Taste As Good As They Look.

I was seduced by the packaging of these beautiful maple syrups and vinegar tonics distributed by Seattle-based Mikuni Wild Harvest when I spotted them on GiltTaste.com so I researched them a little further.



According to an article by Janet McCracken for Bon Appetit, the Vancouver based tonics, have been popping up on the menus of chic restaurants and are favored by chefs like Thomas Keller and Mario Batali for their specialty produce.




The Noble Handcrafted Tonics, of which there are five thus far (rumor has it they will be introducing a molasses) are beautifully packaged in attractive glass bottles with cork stoppers, melted wax and labels reminiscent of Knob Creek Whisky.




The elegant package design was created by Graphic Designer and Wedding photographer Heather Nguyen of Vancouver.


Noble Tonic 01 -Tuthilltown Bourbon Barrel Matured Maple Syrup


NOBLE didn't choose just any bourbon to create the subtly spiked edge of Tonic 01. Tuthilltown Spirits is New York's first whiskey distillery since prohibition, distilling some of America's most prized spirits. Their handmade bourbons, produced with locally sourced grain and fruit farmed less than 10 miles away, contain no added flavor or color and are not chill or carbon filtered. Tonic 01, originally sourced from heritage sugar shacks in the ancient maple orchards of Quebec, has a hint of raw bourbon flavor thanks to 6 to 9 months spent in New York State's Tuthilltown Distillery's charred American oak barrels.

Bon Appetit says "Like we said, this is made for candied bacon. I would not say no to some corn johnny cakes with this, either." $20


Noble Tonic 02 - Tahitian Vanilla Bean & Egyptian Chamomile Blossom Matured Maple Syrup


To harness the unmistakable flavor of Tahitian Vanilla and the buttery, apple aroma of Egyptian Chamomile Blossom, the artisans behind NOBLE's Tonic No. 02 infuse maple syrup with the blossoms and vanilla beans. We absolutely love the floral aromas in this maple syrup with toasty corn bread, or as a substitute for brown sugar in cinnamon buns.

Bon Appetit says "This syrup is more delicate, and in order to taste the chamomile and vanilla, I would eat this on some plain greek yogurt or a simple waffle." $20


Noble Tonic 03 - Maple Matured Sherry Bourbon Oak Vinegar


This vinegar's truly unique flavor is developed while aging in bourbon oak barrels at Tuthilltown Distillery in New York State. For 6 to 9 months, NOBLE ages genuine Spanish sherry vinegar in bourbon barrels, received only one day after the bourbon has been drained.

Bon Appetit says "If you mix this with a terrific olive oil, it becomes a dressing for a Spanish salad of greens, marcona almonds, and manchego." $18


Noble Tonic 04 -Pharaoh's Heirloom Lemon Matured White Wine Vinegar


Tonic 04 is a 5-year barrel aged, white wine vinegar infused with organic, heirloom Egyptian lemon peel. The bright, sweet and citrusy flavors are balanced by woody, spicy flavors from NOBLE's barrel aging process at Tuthilltown Distillery in New York State.

Bon Appetit says "I really like the idea of vinegary beverages, like kombucha or Pok Pok's new drinking vinegar, Som, and this is so good that I would mix it with soda water and drink it like that. The lemon flavor is complex and spicy, and brings a unique brightness to the flavor." $20


Noble Tonic 05 - XO Aged Balsamic Vinegar


"XO" signifies refinement and age in the world of Cognac. This extraordinary vinegar is no different. Tonic 05 is a sweet, syrupy refined finishing vinegar. After aging for 3-4 months in New York State's Tuthilltown Distillery's Single Grain Bourbon barrels, the lids are removed and replaced with cheesecloth to allow for evaporation. This unique air aging process concentrates and enhances flavors of bourbon and vanilla.

Bon Appetit says "This splurge is on par with any good balsamic. We like to keep it simple, drizzled over asparagus or vanilla ice cream." $95

Buy them here or at GiltTaste.com if you are a member. If you are not, feel free to use my personal invite link.

photos courtesy of Gilt.com, Mikuni and Heather Nguyen