Food for Thought: Thought for Food - Hardcover

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 8496954684 ISBN 13: 9788496954687

Publisher: Actarbirkhauser, 2009

Synopsis

A thought-provoking, inspiring look at artistic and gastronomic creativity through the world's most revolutionary chef, Ferran Adria (elBulli).

Ferran Adria has revolutionized the world of gastronomy over the last 20 years. So original and poetically sensible is Adria's approach to cooking that he is considered to be the greatest "artist of the kitchen" today. He has appeared on the cover of The New York Times Magazine as the leader of A New Nouvelle Cuisine and Time magazine included him in the 100 most influential personalities on the planet. Adria's restaurant, elBulli, was awarded 3 Michelin stars and recognized 4 times as the world's best restaurant by "The Restaurant Magazine".

Food for Thought explores the essence of elBulli's creativity with hundreds of color photographs of Adria's creations, including, for the first time ever, every single dish ever created by elBulli. Inspired by Adria's controversial participation in Documenta 12, this seductive volume features lively dialogue between the most potent critics and creators of the art and gastronomic worlds, including Heston Blumenthal, Bill Burford, Jerry Saltz, Massmiliano Gioni, Anya Gallaccio, Peter Kubelka, Antoni Miralda, Carsten Holler, Bice Curiger, Adrian Searle, Davide Paolini.

"Professionally, I can die after this book." --Ferran Adria

About this title

Review

"....a dense, high-colour tome probing the way in which Ferran's unique approach has taken him to the frontline of culinary artistry." --Wallpaper

"Like an art exhibition about Ferran Adria of El Bulli in book form, this is a thick, beautifully produced product. It contains pictures of his dishes, along with essays written by fellow chefs and critics, graphs, musings, and other ephemera. It would make a great gift, not just for a chef or aspiring chef, but anybody who cares about culture and art." --Chow.com, CBS

"A fascinating combination of food and art, a new volume edited by two prominent 20th century artists looks at artwork culinary and otherwise from one of the world's greatest chefs, Ferran Adria." --Publishers Weekly, Starred Review

"The lavish volume, published by Actar, includes photographs of all the dishes Adria served at elBulli from 1987 to 2007....Essays of fine art, culinary art, and how the two intersect in Adria's work are peppered with images of paintings and sculptures that involve food." --ARTnews

"....a lavish new book titled "Food for Thought: Thought for Food"... has essays by art experts and critics, as well as some more immediate responses to elBulli food collected directly from art-savvy diners." --The Washington Post

"Deftly compiled and expertly edited by the team of Richard hamilton and Vicente Todoli, "Food for Thought: Thought for Food" is a profusely and impressively illustrated 400-page compendium showcasing the culinary artistry of Ferran Adria (Head Chef of elBulli, Barcelona). In addition to displaying Adria's superbly crafted culinary dishes, "Food for Thought: Thought for Food" includes a great deal of background information on both his personal and professional life. Of special note are the informed and informative essays on Adria contributed by other chefs and food critics. Enthusiastically recommended for academic and community library collection, "Food for Thought: Thought for Food" is a simply fascinating and amply rewarding browse for anyone who appreciates the culinary arts in general, and the gustatory genius of Ferran Adria in particular." --The Midwest Book Review

"Deftly compiled and expertly edited by the team of Richard hamilton and Vicente Todoli, "Food for Thought: Thought for Food" is a profusely and impressively illustrated 400-page compendium showcasing the culinary artistry of Ferran Adria (Head Chef of elBulli, Barcelona). In addition to displaying Adria's superbly crafted culinary dishes, "Food for Thought: Thought for Food" includes a great deal of background information on both his personal and professional life. Of special note are the informed and informative essays on Adria contributed by other chefs and food critics. Enthusiastically recommended for academic and community library collection, "Food for Thought: Thought for Food" is a simply fascinating and amply rewarding browse for anyone who appreciates the culinary arts in general, and the gustatory genius of Ferran Adria in particular." --The Midwest Book Review

From Publishers Weekly

Starred Review. Ferran Adria, head chef at elBulli, near Barcelona, is widely considered one of the most innovative artists currently working in food. The term "artist" is not rhetorical: Adria was (controversially) invited to Kassel in 2007 to take part in documenta, one of the world's most important international art exhibitions. Even more controversial was Adria's refusal to come to them-instead, he insisted that elBulli become an official documenta venue. Consequently, the exhibit found curator Roger Buergel flying two patrons per day to Costa Brava (860 miles away) to experience Adria's art. Opening essays provide background on Adria, including about 40 pages of color photos of Adria's dishes, taken by the chef over two decades at elBulli. Editor (and Pop art guru) Hamilton places Adria in a long tradition of food-related art including work by Daniel Spoerri, Bruce Nauman and Alison Knowles. The volume also collects written responses to the documenta dining experience at elBulli; these letters should put to rest any remaining questions regarding the work's artistic merit. Patron Simryn Gill perhaps puts it best: "the experience was curiously disorienting...neither dinner nor supper, nor was it food, nourishment, or sustenance...but rather surprise, pleasure, sensuous delight, repulsion, irritation, discomfort, exhaustion, amazement, stupor."

About this edition

• Publisher: Actarbirkhauser
• Publication date: 2009
• ISBN 10: 8496954684
• ISBN 13: 9788496954687
• Binding: Hardcover
• Language: English
• Number of pages: 343
• Editor: Hamilton Richard