The fake food business is still going strong in Japan, with the country’s famous sample food displays still regularly showcased outside restaurants and cafés from Okinawa to Hokkaido. Although the items look completely edible, these highly realistic food displays are generally made from plastic, resin or wax. One Japanese artist is now taking fake food to the next level by incorporating it into iconic works of art.
Artist Osamu Watanabe currently has an exhibition at the Hirano Museum of Art in Shizuoka prefecture showcasing famous sculptures and paintings remade using fake food. Watanabe uses the same production techniques as fake food makers do, but he focuses more on sweets and desserts. His signature style is known as ‘fake cream art’, which looks like colourful icing piped onto objects or paintings.
One of the main artworks at the exhibition is Watanabe’s take on Vermeer's 'Girl with a Pearl Earring' that features a headpiece made out of a croissant and a fruit crêpe. The rest of the artwork is detailed in small drops of fake cream to match the colours of the painting.
There’s also an interpretation of ‘The Scream’ by Edvard Munch which is made entirely out of fake cream.
A fan of Claude Monet? There’s also a fake cream version of Monet’s Water Lilies on display.
Some of the more colourful artworks include a pastel version of Katsushika Hokusai’s ‘The Great Wave off Kanagawa’ and a Buddha detailed in candy and macarons.
The art exhibition is on until Sunday August 15. General admission is ¥800 (¥300 for junior high and high school students, ¥200 for elementary school students). The museum is close to Shizuoka’s Hamamatsu Station, which is about two hours from Tokyo. For more information, visit the museum website.
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