It may look delicious from a distance, but take a closer look and you’ll see this cupcake is actually entirely composed of fabric and fibre!
Artist Ed Bing Lee has been perfecting his knot sculptures for 40 years and they’re seriously impressive. Titled the Delectable series, Lee turns coloured thread and thousands upon thousands of knots into scrumpious-looking sculptures.
His main inspiration is pointilism, a form of painting where small, distinct dots of colour are applied in a pattern to create an image. He is particularly influenced by the work of French Post-Impressionist painter Georges Seurat and the technical aspects of pointilism, and uses differing dots of intensity to create the shades, tones and details in his designs.
Lee was initially attracted to the process of knotting due to its immediacy and the fact that little specialized equipment is required. This allows for many variations in approach to the design of each piece.
Discussing his process with Creative Boom, Lee said: “In three dimensional or sculptural work, the knotting process is most forgiving and the work can progress in many directions simultaneously. The distinction of warp and filling is interchangeable.”
He explained that shaping is possible in a variety of ways, by adding or dropping ends, by using different tensions or by using different knots or by using a different material.
As well as his love for pointilism, he continually returns to art history for visual and conceptual stimulation. “For me, it is the perfect jumping off point for work in a technique that knows no boundaries.”
The technique is actually fairly common and the material easy to aquire, but it is interesting to see how Lee has crafted something new and unique using a traditonal method. Check out more of his fabulous fabric foodstuffs below!
This three tiered layer cake looks good enough to eat.
As does this chocolate cupcake.
It’s hard to believe this popcorn is made out of shoe laces!
Everyone likes chocolate ice cream.
But in case you don’t Lee has also made a strawberry version.
Mmmm…
Look at this adorable mini cupcake!
The detail in this lemon meringue pie is extraordinary.
So many little knots!
This July fourth cupcake would be the perfect decor for a summer BBQ!
And this Sundae just looks pure yum!
Art this mouth-wateringly good is hard to find, so if you want to see more of Lee’s work, visit his website.
