The Art of Food

I enjoy food, but rarely, if ever, plate my dinner in a way that would pass as a Five-Star entrée. I have taken cooking classes in high school and learned a few things about garnishing, though I haven't used them since. I like the idea of creating something appealing to the eye that is so temporary. It's a shame to waste food, but when I see something put together so nicely I often don't want to ruin it. Whether it's making a fruit sculpture, garnishing a dessert, or plating an entrée, the craft for making food look beautiful or interesting is often overlooked. 

Snow Sculpture

With all the snow that came in the last couple days followed by high winds, which made some pretty sweet drifts outside of my apartment, my roommates, one of my neighbors, and I decided to go out and play in the snow. We decided to tunnel through an area of the drifts and made about a 15-foot tunnel (even with 5 feet of it collapsing). This got me thinking of all the art that is, or can be, made in the snow, so I decided to look at some snow sculptures. While they all were amazing and had to take a lot of time and dedication, this is an example of one that amazed me due to the frailty of the design. As with making a tunnel, you have to be careful not to get too close to a side or top in order to prevent if from collapsing, the snow sculpture also had to be done with great care. Not only did the artist have to work cautiously, but they had to do it out in the cold!

http://www.dailymotion.com/video/xcv6dv_pixels-by-patrick-jean_creation

Photographs

While Ansel Adams produced photography from 1920's-1970's, due to the high resolution he took his images at makes them seem as though they were taken from a digital camera and maybe even re-touched in Photoshop a little. I just came across some of his images and was amazed at the crisp and clear qualities of his work, especially the landscape images.

Compassion

I Googled "compassion" and these two images came up. Compassion is something I'm trying to involve in my life more as I continue in my journey through life. I feel there would be less disagreement, hate, and overall problems in our world if compassion was more central in our lives. All humans are connected in the fact we yearn for acceptance and love. While being a push-over can be seen as something weak and pathetic, the simplest act of compassion can turn a world up-side-down and I feel those are the kinds of acts we need today.

To-Go Ware

My room mates and I just exchanged our Christmas gifts last week since none of us had presents ready before we left for break. While I loved the gifts I received equally, I thought I would share one thing I got because I think it is genius.

It's called "To-Go Ware" and consists of a knife, fork, spoon, and chopsticks all made of bamboo and comes in a cute little carrying case. Using this product can help reduce excess waste by reducing the amount of plastic silverware we use. I can't wait to use mine!!!

GD 2 Project

For the first project of the semester in GD 2 I have to come up with five designs that each contain something to do with three passions/obsessions that I have chosen. My three things fall more along the line of passions than obsessions. They are: traveling, sewing (sort of how it's related to handmade gifts or items), and the Non-GMO movement (focusing on awareness of the effects of it) which I have been introduced to mostly by a couple documentaries:

http://www.foodincmovie.com/about-the-issues.php
http://www.thefutureoffood.com/About.html

A topic all three of my passions bring up is awareness. Being aware of how the choice we make affect the way we live. In the area of travel, awareness is opening your mind to all the wonderful things every culture, country, or people has to offer and teach each other.