Food is a part of our everyday lives and yet something a lot of people take for granted. How often do you stop and look at food, noticing how produce changes throughout the seasons? Not many of us do, unless you are a food photographer or have a chef in the family. Artists Caitlin Levin and Henry Hargreaves got up close and personal on their most recent collaboration, "Food Scans," cutting up produce to reveal its patterns and scanning them to create beautiful, intricate imagery.
Different produce grows at different times of the year (I know that seems obvious, but there are some people who really think food just magically appears at the supermarket). Levin and Hargreaves were commissioned last year by The Wall Street Journal to create a tear-out page the day before Christmas so their readers could use it as wrapping paper. The artists collected produce and captured images in a way that was unconventional and unexpected. They decided to use a scanner to grab a different look and feel to the images. "Food Scans" is a series that showcases the beauty and bounty of seasonal fruits and vegetables throughout the year. Organized by the twelve months, each image is a visual representation of the kinds of food that grow during that season.
We like to test ourselves with new approaches to making images. We liked the way the scanner has almost no depth of field, so something that is very common to us (produce) looks a little ghostly and ethereal. It also meant that we couldn't see what we were doing until after we scanned it, so that was exciting and unexpected.
January produce: endive, radicchio, kale, turnips, and leeks.
March produce: asparagus, artichoke, broccolini, greens, and string beans.
June produce: fava, chives, apricots, cherries, plums, sugar snaps, peaches, blueberries, strawberries, and radish.
September produce: corn, garlic, beans, Mexican sour gherkins, ground cherries, sunchoke, and dill.
October produce: mushrooms and greens.
