These artists don't use paint to create their works of art, they use food! Check out their masterful portraits and sculptures that are made from all things edible.
By Lauren Haslett and Lauren Ramakrisna
Jason Mecier
"Don't play with your food!" Moms across the world say it every day. But these folks don't just play with their food — they transform it into museum-quality works of art. From intricately sculpted melons to portraits of celebrities made entirely from food to life-size chocolate furniture, we've found some of the most creative (and impressive) food art around. Want to see more outrageous food? Check out these 12 bizarre bacon products.
You won't find a paintbrush in Jason Mecier's studio. The mosaic portrait artist's representations of famous faces — including Rosie O'Donnell (at left), Rachael Ray, and Jerry Seinfeld — are made out of candy, potato chips, cookies, and other edible goodies.
During the 2012 election season, Industry of the Ordinary, an organization consisting of artists Adam Brooks and Mathew Wilson, hired artist Bob Kling to carve this bust of President Obama out of unsalted butter. The sculpture was displayed in the President's hometown, Chicago, IL.
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Chocolate Saints Sculptures
Courtesy of <a href="http://www.cosimocavallaro.com/" target="_blank">Cosimo Cavallaro</a>
Montreal-based artist and film director Cosimo Cavallaro works in many mediums. He's created artistic forms and installations with everything from cheese to ham to candy, but some of his most classical looking pieces are made from chocolate. This sculpture, a piece from his "Sweet Saints" collection, depicts an angel-like figure of incredible detail; it's sculpted entirely out of pure chocolate.
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Popcorn Movie-Watcher
Courtesy of <a href="http://dancretu.tumblr.com/" target="_blank">Dan Cretu</a>
A piece that creates meaning through whimsical self-reference, this sculpture of an avid movie-goer is made mainly of a beloved movie theater snack — popcorn.
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Sugar Mural
Courtesy of <a href="http://www.shelleymillerstudio.com/" target="_blank">Shelley Miller</a>
From a distance, you'd never guess that this incredibly detailed mural is made entirely out of frosting and sugar decorations. But artist Shelley Miller, based in Montreal, travels around the globe creating installations like the edible one pictured here. Many of her pieces are commissioned to enliven public spaces — this particular work was created in March of 2011 on a wall in downtown Victoria, BC.
Most of us think of stains as something that ruin a good tablecloth or favorite dress. But Amelia Fais Harnas turns that preconceived notion on its head, and creates truly amazing art by staining fabrics with red wine. This self-portrait, in which the artist depicts herself drinking a delightful glass of vino, is particularly intimate and detailed. Harnas used a Damiani Vino Rosso, as well as bronze powder and acrylic, to create this image on a piece of cotton fabric.
Kevin Van Aelst constructs unique and provocative pieces out of a wide variety of ordinary, everyday materials, but his works in food are some of his most stunning. This globe, carved out of a common Red Delicious apple, is extraordinarly intricate. It's his ability to take commonplace objects and materials and turn them into something spectacular that makes Kevin Van Aelst's work so appealing.
San Francisco-based artist Jason Mecier — who also made the amazing mosaic portrait of Rosie O'Donnell featured in this collection — is continually coming up with clever new ways to depict our favorite figures in American pop culture. This image of Kevin Bacon is made entirely out of — you guessed it — bacon.
It took more than 250 molds to create this Jell-O geography project in August 2009. To make their showstopping map, designers Bompas & Parr borrowed architectural techniques used to design skyscrapers and tapped into their prior masterpieces: glow-in-the-dark creations and wedding jelly molds.
To create his incredible landscapes, Carl Warner's medium of choice is fruits and vegetables. Fruit Balloons and Cart was inspired by the English countryside and created for a UK supermarket.
This self-taught food sculptor could win a gold medal for patience. Just one squash in his Tempo di Zucche took more than five hours to carve using one carving tool: a stiletto Thai knife.
For 30-year veteran food sculptor Jim Victor, creating the Peanut Brittle House was a piece of, well, almost anything but cake. The sculpted house has peanut brittle walls, fruit roll-up roofing applied with chocolate "cement," licorice candy chimneys, cast sugar windows, taffy mullions, licorice candy steps, fondant doors and shutters, and gumdrop, Gummi bear, and rock candy bushes.
Jimmy Zhang, a graduate of the Culinary Arts Institute in China, has always been fascinated by the ancient art of fruit and vegetable carving. He got the idea for this masterfully carved melon from a photo of a lonely boat with a cormorant standing on the bow. Want to learn Jimmy's skill? Check out his classes at Art Chef Inc. in the San Francisco Bay Area.
Prudence Staite's art and sculptures have featured sugar, cheese, pudding, bacon, and pizza. Sounds like a good dinner! Her famous sofa is made out of more than 440 pounds of solid chocolate. Its cushion is solid milk chocolate covered with a dark chocolate "fabric" to mirror the look of leather.
Tropical Desires is an award-winning piece of food art. In February 2008, the sculpted melons took second place on the Food Network Challenge Fruit Sculpture Rematch. Want a centerpiece of your own? Check out veggyart.com. Custom carvings start at $500 and go up to $7,000!
San Francisco-based Boudin Bakery's master baker pays homage to the West Coast's Dungeness crab by crafting it in sourdough bread. The bakery sells a one-pound loaf for $24.95 in the store and online. Serve it at your next crab dinner.