Science tells us that when it comes to food, if it looks good, it'll taste even better. Our brains, in fact, use all of our senses to decide what's appealing to eat—by the way it looks, feels, smells, and, of course, tastes.
But our love of good things to eat extends beyond our physiological needs. Artists paint, sculpt and photograph beautiful displays of food for our enjoyment—and many chefs create dishes that are truly works of art.
Enjoy this tasteful selection from our collection bringing food and art together.
641.815 Bul
Every cake in this book is thoughtfully built to be beautiful on the outside as well as the inside. Making the Dulce de Leche-Nutella Cream Torte (page 183) felt like I was creating a super tasty piece of art.
641.812 Del
With a chapter for Winter, Spring, Summer, and Fall, you'll learn to make nearly 50 creative, delicious boards that capitalize on the flavors and festivities of the season. Complete with suggested flavor and beverage pairings, styling tips, ingredient profiles, and more, Around the Board creates visually stunning platters.
641.53 Bro
Over 50 creative and delicious food boards that are inspiring and easy to recreate with easy-to-find foods, ranging from breakfast boards and dessert boards to any special occasion board you would ever need. The arragements are masterpieces to behold.
641.812 Cal
What is it about tiny foods that makes them seem more like works of art? Each page is a new delight for the eye: check out the artistry in the detail of a miniature stack of pancakes placed next to a large fork, or meatballs with rounds of spaghetti swirled on top.
641.5 Lea
A wonderful collection of recipes collected from the famous painter's handwritten notes, as well as from his family and friends. Included along with photographs of each dish and Pollock's paintings are tales about the artist, courtesy of the people close to him. A perfect mashup of food and art.
Adult Nonfiction - 641.013 Bax
The French have always celebrated the relationship between food, art and literature. Baxter weaves together food history, artists and authors for a view of the meals, paintings and books that make French culture. A feast for the eyes and the palate.
641.8652 Pfe
Elegant Pie is almost exclusively a book on how to create artwork out of pie crust. The book includes numerous projects with templates for cutouts. Step-by-step photographs are included for creating all the wonderful designs which are divided into beginner, intermediate, and advanced projects.
A great course from LinkedIn Learning on picking the right camera, setting a mood, photographing in restaurants, and more. View the course
778.9964 Viv
Learn all about how foods are prepped for those perfect photos in print and film. Vivaldo, a food stylist in Los Angeles, shares her tips and tricks for making food look like art for the camera.
641.86 Cam
This is a fusion of Japanese ingredients and carefully precise creations combined with French pastries. The finished desserts look like edible works of art. The recipes are elegant and somewhat complex, but still accessible to the home baker.
641.5944 Dal
Dalí meets cooking, and the results are surreal—and totally decadent. Includes gorgeous photographs of recipes and illustrations by Dalí. The recipes, though rather complex, are amazing just to peruse.
641.86 Fre
Included here are desserts inspired to look like modern pieces of art. These don't necessarily mimic the original artwork, so much as they evoke some aspect of it. While some of the recipes are complex to execute, others are as simple as pulling together a cheese plate to look like Mark Bradford's Strawberry.
641.8652 Nug
The pies in Pie Style are stunning masterpieces of art, but Helen Nugent provides complete instructions to creating beautiful pies at home. Braided, embossed, cut out, colored, and shaped crust techniques are described in detail and with useful photographs.
641.8652 Ko
The pie-making genius behind the popular Instagram account @lokokitchen reveals the secrets behind her mind-blowing creations. Details on how to cut, braid, and otherwise combine fruits, flour, and other ingredients into precisely positioned designs.
778.99641 Duj
If you're looking to create your own photographic masterpieces—or just trying to get better pictures of your dinner on Instagram—this book gives you all the details on lighting, composition and more. There's even a whole section on taking pictures of different types of foods.
Adult Nonfiction - 641.83 She
Julia Sherman gives us a wonderful book full of beautiful salads. She also gives us a generous peek at the artists who created this edible art. The recipes are approachable and stretch the bounds of what can be considered a salad with everything from soup to desserts and more standard green salads. Creativity takes salad in new and interesting directions with great eye appeal.
Adult Nonfiction - 642.8 Neu
Food cut precisely to turn it into works of art for the plate and table. Gourds, melons, apples and many other fruits and vegetables become flowers, fish, leaves and more in the many different projects. Detailed instructions for cutting and information on proper cutting tools is provided.