Gummy Bearskin Rugs and Other Clever, Gorgeous Food Art from Brock Davis
All photo credits: Brock Davis
You may have already seen Brock Davis’s artwork pinging around the Internet. There’s that gummy bearskin rug, splayed and translucent, and the imperial starfighter jet made from Cheerios and Crispix—a crunchy ode to “Star Wars.” His mustachioed kiwi gets a snort every time we see it.
Davis has a quirky view of the world, as evinced in his work as creative director on projects including Subaru’s dogs-driving-car ads. But there’s a wonderful, childlike weirdness to his personal photography, especially the pieces based on food. And for good reason; his best ideas sometimes strike Davis when his kids are elbows-deep in mac ‘n’ cheese.
“It brings me back to when I was that age and would play with my mashed potatoes, making pathways with my fork,” Davis told us. “Food is cool when you’re a kid, because it’s new; it’s fun to try to find a way to feel interesting again.”
The idea for the gummy bearskin rug came to Davis as he watched cartoons with his eight-year-old son and five-year-old daughter. One ‘toon referenced a bearskin rug, which reminded Davis of the gummy bears tucked away in his kitchen.
“I wondered if it would be possible to cut it in half and manipulate the arms,” Davis recalled. “It was really an exercise in curiosity, more than anything else.” Most of Davis’s doctored subjects are simple, completed in as little as twenty minutes. That’s part of their charm, he said.
“If I make an idea quickly, some of the spontaneity clings to it,” Davis explained, “and it kinds of attaches itself to a final image.”
Take a look at some of our favorite of Davis’s food-inspired work below, and pop over to his website for more.
Star Wars Tie Fighter
Broccoli Tree House
Injured Gingerbread Man
Rice Krispyhenge
Cucumber Orca
