Art + Design: Food Art
10.22.10 | Matt Robinson | Art and Design
Can food be art? I think so. A well-executed recipe, carefully presented on a beautiful plate in a restaurant that’s been designed with considerable thought, is akin to performance art. The whole experience—taste, sound, texture—can elevate a meal to something more. Think of the best meal you’ve ever eaten. When you describe it to others, what details do you include? Personally, I mention the food first. But I quickly move on to everything else that contributed to the experience, because they’re often just as vital as the quality of the meal.
I was reminded of the alchemy of food and art when the Internet blew up a few weeks ago about a cookbook published by IKEA called Homemade is Best (Hembakat är Bäst in Swedish). Check out these photographs, which were taken by Carl Kleiner, a fine art photographer based in Stockholm.
I edit art and design books, and I’ve never worked on cookbooks, so I’m not the authority on this. But I’ve never seen a cookbook with photographs such as these. And we publish a lot of cookbooks here with some striking, innovative photographs.
When word spread around the office about this cookbook—which is not currently available in the US—we asked our cookbook editors if they were interested in pursuing an edition for the North American market. They responded that they thought it might be better suited for us. At first I was puzzled, but now I think they’re right. Based on the photography, this book is a beautiful object that approaches depicting ingredients and the art of making food from a very new angle. We’ve also published one or two books in the past that were clearly not cookbooks but which did feature food.
I wonder if foodies and art lovers out there are as interested in this book as I am. Would it be accepted as an art book? Or is it just a different spin on the traditional cookbook? Is the photography interesting enough to stand on its own? If you have thoughts, please share them in the comments below. Thanks!
Matt Robinson
Art + Design
Popularity: 1% [?]
I love cookbooks with great photos! But I've never seen one where the ingredients are laid out in their "before" state. I love to lay out all of my ingredients before I cook (even the "pinch of salt" it a teeny-tiny glass bowl) and would love a cookbook that laid them out so artfully. It would be best suited for an organic, eat-local-foods, farmers market sort of cookbook. Because a glob of Crisco just isn't all that attractive. The recipes would have to stand up to the innovative photography, for sure.
I want this book! For the photographs and I'm very curious about the recipes.
I like the idea of making it an art book. Memoirs and cookbooks have been meshed together—why not art books and cookbooks? Those photos are so unusual and intriguing that it seems like they'd make a strong basis for a book.
These photgraphs are simply amazing!!! I would seriously spend hours drooling over this. Lovely eye-candy for anyone who likes "visual" reading… beautiful!!!
These would be good as extra large recipe cards that I could use to decorate my kitchen, and occasionally take off the wall to cook the recipe on the back. I wouldn't buy a whole book of these just for the art. They get a bit repetitive. The recipes would have to somehow change my mind about the flavor of the food at the Ikea food court.
The images alone are delicious to look at BUT if this is a cookbook, well, then the proof would be in the pudding, so to speak. I purchase cookbooks for the pleasure of the recipes and what the dishes would bring to my table. As an artist I love to look at great images and a well presented cookbook will win out every time-but it is usually what it looks like after the ingredients have been combined and that is where the real art of a cookbook lies after all.
i blogged about this beauty and one of my readers was able to get me a copy!!! just got it in the mail and it is one of the most inspiring art/cookbooks that i've seen in a while!! would be so rad if there was a north american edition. people here need to be able to indulge in this beauty as well!!!
j.
Wow!! What fun.
that's not art, that's OCD :)
Matt – I love this idea. I think a lot of food lovers already use their cookbooks as art books, displaying them not only in the kitchen but in the living room as well. I'd love to see this available in the states.
I love this idea!
Have you seen the “making of” video?
http://newyork.grubstreet.com/2010/10/watch_a_mak…
A break from the familiar is good. I'm blown away by it, I love it. There is no reason that something like this could be an art/cook book.