Column Ever thought about illustrating food instead of photographing it? Here are a few essential tips from illustrator Jessie Kanelos Weiner. 

In a world where we are regularly inundated with food porn, I find food illustrations refreshing. Particularly when it comes to recipes, food illustrations allow a way of guiding the reader as to what the food should look like, but without any judgment attached to the end product. Follow a recipe in a cookbook with a photograph, and you might be disappointed by the end result, which is normal, given that you didn’t spend 18 hours styling and shooting it. Follow a recipe with an illustration on the other hand, and the comparison of your culinary creation and the image is easier to digest.

While I am no food illustrator, I do love sketching food, and it’s something I would like to be better at, so I figured there was no better way of doing just that than by talking to a professional. My friend Jessie Kanelos Weiner is a talented illustrator and stylist, and while she doesn’t just work with food, her food illustration portfolio list is long. Her new book “Edible Paradise: A Coloring Book of Seasonal Fruits and Vegetables“ is out next February.

I caught up with her to learn her essential tips for people who want to get into food illustration, not only for some useful insight, but more importantly, for some inspiration.

Invest in the best materials within your means. 

“It is the same « you are what you eat » mentality . Good work isn’t a reflection of expensive supplies, but it can take the quality to the next level.  I use a set of 30 or so Windsor & Newton pot watercolors.  I replenish only once or twice a year so it isn’t a huge hit on the wallet.  However, good quality watercolor paper adds up.  I stock up on 100-page blocks of Canson Montval 300 g/m2 watercolor paper which clears up my mind from ever worrying about running out.”

Think about what makes food appetizing to the eye and try to recreate the same qualities.

“Color, reflection, contrast, depth and texture are all qualities that go into the creation of a successful dish.  And they are all vital to recreating it 2–dimensionally, too.”

Learn the basics of Photoshop. 

“Because a huge component of creating and sharing work now is digital, learn the basics in Photoshop to clean up images before posting them to the internet.”

Look look look draw. 

“A few years ago, in a grueling interview for an MFA program at NYU (which unfortunately didn’t come to be), the distinguished professor interviewing my portfolio told me  « you don’t look enough when you draw. You draw what you think something is, but you don’t back it up with enough  firsthand information ».  She was right. Really look at the subjet at hand.  How do the elements interact ?  Study the positive and negative spaces.  What are the darkest and lightest areas ? Drawing what you « think » an eggplant looks like is mental block when you can actually look at it firsthand.”

Start a blog, an Instagram or a Tumblr. 

“I started a food blog about my life in France in 2011.  Knowing my embarrassing photographic abilities, I added illustrations instead.  It gave me the confidence and the platform to start considering pursuing illustration professionally.  When I finally did, I had a body of work and plenty of feedback from readers to give me a boost of confidence to do so.”

Find inspiration. 

“I love Instagram for following illustrators’ processes, techniques and new projects.  For example, I was recently inspired by Clym Everden (@clymdraws) who has started creating short illustrated GIFS, inspiring me to think about simple animation.  Now I just have to figure out how to do it.”

You can follow Jessie on Instagram for more illustration inspiration.

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This is the latest installment of Anna Brones’ weekly column at EcoSalon: Foodie Underground, an exploration of what’s new and different in the underground movement, and how we make the topic of good food more accessible to everyone. More musings on the topic can be found at www.foodieunderground.com.

Illustrations: Jessie Kanelos Weiner

The post How to Draw Food: Essential Tips from a Food Illustrator – Foodie Underground appeared first on EcoSalon.

We’ve already discussed the obsession of pairing your wines and appetizers with your DSLR. In sifting through old photos recently, I was shocked to realize that my photographic theme is about 80/20, food vs. other. When something looks good and tastes good it’s hard to not want to document it. But photography is a quick fix. In only a few seconds you’ve snapped what’s probably taken you (or someone else) a significant time to prep. So just like many food trends have started to incorporate “slow” elements, so has documenting them.

The new food porn? Drawing. Taking the old fashioned, hand-made mode of documentation and using it to highlight culinary works. I’ve seen several food-focused sketchbooks over the last few months, and much like well done travel journals make you want to drop everything and book a plane ticket, these works of art inspire a new-found love of food.

And although drawings and sketchbooks are a throwback to a time when we were less consumed by digital media, the internet is an excellent place to indulge in this new food porn. In fact, there’s an entire Flickr group devoted to it. Last summer, Etsy hosted a Competition for Food Art. This isn’t just sketching your wine glass on your dinner napkin; this is serious business.

My personal favorite source of creative inspiration is They Draw and Cook, a blog that focuses on depicting entire recipes through illustrations. And then there are artists like Emily Katz who take simple concoctions and turn them into masterpieces by drawing, painting and then outlining with the help of her sewing machine. The results are stunning. Illustrator Claudia Pearson is another, that not only draws greeting cards with recipes, but also has a “Buy Local” inspired calendar.

Why is food illustration taking off? Maybe it’s the combination of the love of food and art. Maybe it’s simply wanting to document the beauty of fresh vegetables. Or maybe it’s partnering DIY food culture with DIY art. Whatever it is, that sketchbook is certainly much more inconspicuous than a bright flash in the midst of dinner. Time to get to drawing.

Editor’s note: This is the latest installment of Anna Brones’s column at EcoSalon, Foodie Underground. Each week, Anna will be taking a look at something new and different that’s taking place in the underground food movement, from supper clubs to mini markets to culinary avant garde.

Images: Claudia Pearson, Laura Cooke

The post Foodie Underground: The Other Food Porn appeared first on EcoSalon.