Food design!

Food design is a term many of us are well familiar with, but still, it can be rather difficult finding specific information on the topic. So what is food design? I have taken a closer look at the term, and on some designers working with food as their main material…

"A food designer is somebody working with food, with no idea of cooking". Inga Knölke, 1999



According to Martí Guixé who had the very first food design exhibition in 1997, Food design is a discipline that makes it possible to think in food as an edible designed product, an object that negates any reference to cooking, tradition and gastronomy.
Over you see his I-cakes where the pie graphic indicates the ingredients of the cake in percentages.Decoration becomes information.



One of today’s most important food designers might be Marije Vogelzang's, although she prefers the title Eating-Designer. She works in context of Dutch design, international design and trends in food, eating culture and society. Last year she launched her book Eat Love, exploring our relationships to food, and is how so few of us fully engage all five senses when we eat. Vogelzang’s goal is to entertain yet it must also nourish and engage the senses, to engage a dialogue about the psychological, cultural and design elements of food.





But the terms of Food Design can change if you just as a little & in the middle. Food & Design on the other hand is not objects with food as the main material, but it can be used as a term to describe design objects important to show off, or even serve, the food on. One example is packaging design, where the design part lays in the packaging and the food is main product.



The lines between designer, chefs and pastry chef seem to get thinner and thinner each day. The well-known American pastry chef Bakerella is a great example of just that. On her blog she updates us on how to bake cakes that not only have a great taste but it has to look good as well! Her creations are like eye-candy to watch, with strong colours and great product photos.



The terms for what is design, what is food, what is packaging and what is what… might be a bit confusing but one thing is crystal clear: the relationship between food and design is and will be an important aspect of the future of food culture. (and maybe even culture in general). Over you see Coffeesphere — coffee that can be eaten like an oyster, produced using sferificación, a technique invented by Adrià, in constant evolution.

So if you feel inspired after this, well; here is a list of some interesting food-pages online:

The Kitchen
Marije Vogelzang's
Food & Design (in Norwegian only)
Cakejournal
Smittenkitchen
tastespotting

Liqurious
Bakerella
Food-design