Van Gogh, 4 Other Artists Immortalized in Food in Art Fund Competition

Let me begin by saying that I used to be homeless.  Food was a sacred issue.  To find any was rapture and to waste any was an unforgivable sin.  You could play with your food -- but only if nothing was wasted and everything was eaten before it began to rot.

So forgive me if I cannot get into the food art fad, which got a huge shot of publicity in February when the prestigious Time magazine did a feature on 5 artistic masterpieces recreated with food, including Vincent Van Gogh's Self Portrait with a Bandaged Ear turned into a vertical ploughman's lunch (pictured, left.) The frame is made up of sliced bead and French loaf, the eyes peppercorns, the coat button a pickle slice, the green bits lettuce and the bandage a smear of brie.  Somewhere there are gherkins, pickled onions and yellow cheese.

Another interesting creation was a Rice Crispie Treat splattered with icing to mimic a Jackson Pollack painting. Also there is a recreation of Damien Hurst's Skull which defies explanation, although apparently almonds played a part in it.  See even more on Art Fund's Instagram page, Facebook page or on Twitter using the #ediblemasterpieces.

These creations were done to raise money for the UK non-profit Art Fund as part of the Edible Masterpieces Project, a competition which goes in until 30 June, 2014. This uses all kinds of fundraising events to give money to UK's art galleries and museums so they will not close.  Now that I can sink my teeth into.

Image is from Slate, which got it from Art Fund. I'm not sure if the image is copyrighted. (Sorry!)

YouTube Video: "Art Eyes: The Eyes of Vincent Van Gogh"

This is a very short video (1 minute 14 seconds) put up by the National Gallery of Art in Washington DC of one of Vincent's many self-portraits.  It focuses on seeing Vincent's brushstrokes and glops of paint in places which tell just as much about what type of person Vincent was as does his physical features.

The thing that touches me the most about Vincent's art is that you can see his brushstrokes.  Those brushstrokes are the way Vincent achieves immortality.  I don not believe in God or heaven, but I do believe in brushstrokes.  Usually these are hidden or blended in so that the canvass looks like a photo -- even before the invention of cameras.  By letting us see his brushstrokes, Vincent was letting us peek into the creative fires of an artist.

Documentary: "The Forger's Masterclass, Episode 3: Van Gogh"

I wish I had a dollar for every time I've heard, "Oh, anyone can paint like him!"  The him referred to being Vincent Van Gogh (1853 - 1890.)  If you think you can paint like Van Gogh, go right ahead and try. All power to you.

Of course, the odds of you being able to do it are slim to none.

This is proven is a half-hour documentary series called The Forger's Masterclass, hosted by convicted art forger John Myatt (who looks a little like Van Gogh).  Myatt did porridge in Brixton Prison -- which is probably still nicer than Alcatraz ever was, but still an awful place.  No, I've never been there, but during my years being homeless in the UK, I met several people who did. 

Anyway, this is the third episode in the series, where Myatt tries to get three art students to balance both passion and control by having them paint their self-portraits in the style of Van Gogh's blue swirly hatless self-portrait from 1889.

Although some of the biography information about Vincent is questionable and the name is constantly mispronounced, it's still an eye-opening program.  It was well worth 28 minutes of my life.  Enjoy.