Art & DesignFEB 8, 2021

My 28 Food Art Pieces That Support Body Positivity

I am a 25-year-old artist from Lithuania and I use everyday objects and food for my art. A few years ago, I started my food art series, named as a well-known hashtag on social media. Food erotica itself is an old term to define tasty and good-looking food that you can’t taste because it’s only photography or a video on the screen. I was encouraged to make it into a series with my main art subject—human. I found out it’s a perfect way to talk about the body without showing any real naked body parts. At that time, I experienced my own body transformation and it was my personal healing process (I gained and lost 22 kg).

I started by taking selfies in front of a mirror and cut out vegetables with photos on the side. The first artwork I shared on social media received many reactions, some of them naked selfies from strangers. I guess that they saw the possibility to show themselves in a very safe way—it’s just vegetables arranged in the right place. While developing this project, I received many messages with selfies. Some of them are in front of you. I know that all of the people who participated are very proud to be in the vegetable series.

More info: vaitkute.com | Instagram

#1 The First Artwork I Shared On Social Media That Received Many Reactions

23points

I dug into the topic more and more and started to prepare for my solo exhibition. Selfies from strangers destroyed some of my boundaries. It was surprising how society perceives the body on social media and I was looking for more challenges. I invited my very closest friends, whom I have never seen naked, into my studio for a photo session. It was a calm and honest process; after a talk, they posed for my food art. The main question was—if we are so close, is it intimidating to be nude?

Food erotica, while being exhibited, got much attention from radio and newspapers, but no television. It gained a title as scandalous and not appropriate nudity. A few times, it was banned on social media as adult content or nudity. Remember—I use only vegetables to create my artworks. All in all, it’s just everyday food from our kitchen.

Now you know the story and every day, I've found a new branch where food erotica could go. I am still developing this project. The latest artwork is Hot Sandwiches, where I am capturing bedtime stories.

In general, it’s just vegetables: some beetroots and carrots together, don’t be fooled.