MOVING PAST PASTILLAGE....I promise !!

 You'd really think that all I had done in the past 3 months is make pastillage...... But the truth is....I've been very busy doing many other things.

Pastillage has become my stress reliever !

When quiet I make the dough and as soon as possible thereafter I cut the pieces.
Colouring, painting, spray painting and putting everything together can occur at any point in time past this when i get the chance and when I need the stress relief.

Some days you just want to paint. ! and be left alone with your own thoughts. (a little difficult when in charge of 16 other chefs in the section, but possible)

This past three weeks have seen the airbrush on the link and so I had to resort to the old style paintbrush and chocolate piping bag for colouring and markings.
Still, I have no complaints for I believe the pieces still worked out wuite nicely and proves that not all modern techniques are required to achieve the age old art of pastillage.

I found the stencils for music notes in an art shop in LA, I love the way they look

And to those wondering, yes this is the last I'll post on pastillage.
Enough has been said and done in this art form for a life time.
Next posting will be a return to other sweet arts.
Happy ending to the year 2011 and may 2012 bring amazing new opportunites to us all.

Pastillage Playtime

In the space of a month I have played with more pastillage than I think I have in the past ten years. Its one of those things where you always wanted to do it, had the ideas, but never the time.
Well now I have succeeded and fullfilled a recent desire, to play in Pastillage.
Ever since a friend of mine who owns a publishing company, Beverley Dutton, of B.Dutton Publishing. Squires and Squires Kitchens fame told me of a book she had published called "THE MASKS OF PROFESSOR AGOSTINNO DESSI", I had always thought that masks and pastillage would go hand in hand.
Art is a form, paper mache and pastillage are our mediums and so I got creating. And just as Beverley had fallen in love with the masks of the famed Professor, I too have fallen in love with the form of the mask in the artisitic sense of Pastillage.
I hope some of you agree and like the efforts of the past month .
If you like the original masks of Profoessor Agostinno Dessi then you can go to http://www.squires-shop.com/ and buy the book, you can travel to Italy and see the real things or you can simply enjoy the sweeter versions in photo form that I have added here.
 Enjoy my friends and Sweet dreams !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Je T'Aime

HAPPY NEW YEAR...a little early

THE RED BARON IN A DOG FIGHT

THE JESTER

MORE MASKS

Simplisity always wins the day and I love this piece for its simple form. Coloured rock sugar forms the coral at the base.

THE ZULU WARRIOR

PRODUCTION IN THE KITCHEN OF PASILLAGE PIECES

NOTHING LIKE MAKING 20 CENTREPIECES INA DAY

Creative Juices Are Flowing Again... A Week With Pastillage

Pastillage for those who do not know, is basically, modelling clay for adults, while for the modern pastrychef it is simply one of the sturdiest and greatest mediums we can make for ourselves that will dry and set up beautifully and hold together for display pieces. The following is what you can do in the space of 8 days, and you can achieve much more than this if you have greater capacity for drying than I had over the past week. 8 days is about the minimum amount of time one needs as it does take a few days for the Pastillage to dry, before colouring, painting or air brushing and before sticking everything together.

Let the following work be the guide to your own creativity...Pastry is such a fun trade...Don't you agree !!

The recipe used for the pastillage is one that was given to me back in the early 90's by EWALD NOTTER when i was doing Sugar Work classes with him in Josefstrasse, in Zurich, Swizerland and some of the designs are from his templates also. The Masks are based on Venetian character masks from the theatre and are formed over a plastic mask which was bought in a craft store in LA, while I was there recently. Pretty much everything else you see from the roses to the discs is free formed. The peacock is based upon one of those snappped together plywood sets...but its a work in development...not happy with the outcome and so will make it again probably next week. I'll post pics when its perfected.