BEAUTY: Sculpture For Halloween--Tomáš Libertíny

Artist Tomáš Libertíny (previously here) uses bees as collaborators on amazing sculptural projects and this set of skulls was inspired by a painting by Caravaggio. The artist explains:

I have took upon working on a series of heads based on the framework of skulls themed as memento vivere as opposite to memento mori. This work is based on the famous story from the New Testament in which the daughter of Herod requests the head of imprisoned John The Baptist. Inspired by the famous painting of Caravaggio Salome with the Head of John the Baptist (c. 1607), the bronze colored serving tray carries a human skull “made by bees”. The honeycomb head is growing out of the dish as if wanting to become alive again. Left longer in the beehive, the head would have become completely human. The process is the reversal of death. I have experienced personal sacrifices and losses in my life that I did not understand the meaning of. We are given time and place in our universe. We are given gifts and purpose which we need to find like tools in the shed. We have so little time to wonder about the magnificent world around us.

The first skull below with the pinkish hue, attained by adding harmless coloring to the hive, is John the Baptist.

The next one, Feed Your Head, was inspired by a lyric from the Jefferson Airplane song "White Rabbit"
 about Alice In Wonderland.

Finally, Tomáš created Pain Au Amour (Bread of Love), showing a skull mounted a baker's peel.

http://www.tomaslibertiny.com/

Honey Lemon Chiffon Pie With Bees

I love clever food and this pie looks very clever. Little bees are made from chocolate covered raisins and almond slices, and the honeycomb pattern is made from bubble wrap!

INGREDIENTS
1 (3.5 ounce) box chocolate-covered raisins
1/3 cup white chocolate melting wafers
Yellow food coloring
1/4 cup sliced almonds
1 9″ blind-baked pie crust
1/4 cup cold water
1 package (2 1/4 teaspoons) unflavored powdered gelatin
1 cup clover honey, divided
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 cup fresh lemon juice, strained, divided
1 tablespoon finely grated lemon zest
4 large egg yolks
2 cups heavy cream, divided
5 tablespoons confectioners’ sugar, divided
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Bubble wrap, to set
Lemon wheels, to garnish, optional
Flowers to garnish, optional

INSTRUCTIONS
1. Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper. Line the chocolate covered raisins in rows.
2. Place the white chocolate melting wafers and a few drops of food coloring in a microwave safe bowl. Microwave to melt according to package directions. Mix until smooth and yellow.
3. Dip a fork into the melted chocolate and then quickly wave the fork over the chocolate-covered raisins, back and forth, drizzling over the melted yellow chocolate to create stripes. Dip the ends of the almond slices into the remaining melted chocolate and press the almond slices onto the sides of the chocolate-covered raisins to create wings. Allow the chocolate to set before moving the bees.
4. Meanwhile, make an ice bath ready by partially filling a large bowl with ice cubes and cold water.
5. Pour 1/4 cup cold water into a saucepan and sprinkle all over with gelatin. Let the mixture sit until the gelatin absorbs all of the water, about 5 minutes. Stir in 3/4 cup of the honey, and then whisk in the salt, 3/4 cup of the lemon juice, lemon zest, and egg yolks. Place the saucepan over medium heat and cook for about 6-8 minutes, stirring constantly, until the mixture has thickened slightly. Don’t let the mixture come to a full boil. It will continue to thicken much, much more as it cools.
6. Immediately transfer the saucepan to the ice bath to let cool until the lemon mixture is cold to the touch. Whisk occasionally to make sure the mixture is cooling evenly.
7. Beat 1 1/2 cups of the cream with 1/4 cup of the confectioner’s sugar until soft peaks form. Mix in the vanilla extract and beat again until stiff peaks form. Fold the whipped cream, a bit at a time, into the cooled lemon mixture. Keep folding until smooth and well-combined. Pour the mixture into the prepared crust and smooth the top. Firmly press the bubble wrap, bubble-side down, onto the surface of the pie. Make sure that the filling has filled in all of the crevices in between the bubbles to get the neatest indentations. Transfer the pie to the freezer for at least 4 hours, to set. Once you can peel the bubble wrap off without disturbing the filling, it’s ready to glaze.
8. In a microwave-safe bowl, combine the remaining honey and lemon juice and microwave for 30 seconds, or until softened. Mix well and brush over the top of the frozen pie. Refrigerate the pie for an hour to thaw.
9. In a large bowl, whisk the remaining cream and confectioner’s sugar until stiff peaks form. Spoon the whipped cream on top of the pie and decorate with the honey bees, lemon wheels, and flowers. Serve.

 

This delightful recipe comes from Morgan at Host The Toast.
https://hostthetoast.com/honey-lemon-chiffon-pie/

BEAUTY: Sculpture--Tomáš Libertíny

Slovakian-born artist Tomáš Libertíny now has a studio in Rotterdam where he works with bees to collaborate on sculptures. His work reminds me of Aganetha Dyck who also uses the handiwork of bees to alter and distort traditional figurative ceramic sculptures.

Libertíny created the agonizing piece entitled The Unbearable Lightness out of resin and beeswax, seen below.

Libertíny also creates other beeswax objects, most made from the honeycomb itself, like these vessels, below.

http://www.tomaslibertiny.com/

BEAUTY: Sculpture--Aganetha Dyck

These collaborative sculptures are the result of Aganetha Dyck and bees. Fascinated by inter-species communication, apiary, hives, and honeycombs, Dyck chooses ready-made porcelain figures for bees to coat with wax and build into their hives, pioneering a new art form known as "apisculpture." The result is a curious clash between the human world, and the insect world...which actually ends up seeming quite alien, ready to innocently obliterate the human world.

Top to bottom: Queen; Queen detail; The MMasked Ball series: Chess; The MMasked Ball series: Promenade Princess; The MMasked Ball series: The Promise; The MMasked Ball series: The Whisper; Closer To Her

Take a look at this lovely short video about an exhibition at the Confederation Centre of the Arts on Prince Edward Island, featuring the work of Aganetha Dyck.

http://members.shaw.ca/ahtenaga/