Food For Thought: Artist Recreates Iconic Portraits Using Snacks And Trash

Nadia Luongo. 29, recreated iconic figures such as Marilyn Monroe, Freddie Mercury and Mr Bean using a variety of edible and trashed materials.

From buttons and abandoned barbie heads to black beans and ketchup - each piece is crafted using a mix of mad materials.

Imaginative creations such as ‘Drew Berry-more’ and ‘The Lord of the Onion Rings’ combine celebrity names and film titles with their foody painting materials.

Nadia, a graduate in Biomedical Engineering from Naples, Italy, has been passionate about drawing since childhood.

Her works take between 20 minutes to an hour to create and sell for around €20 each.

Her next project will be to make food artworks inspired by Quentin Tarantino movies

Nadia said: “I’ve dedicated myself to make some celebrities portraits using trash and some useless objects: bottle caps, buttons, beads, secondhand toys, recording tapes, pieces of clothes, newspapers and so on. That's a way for me to give new life to things that would normally be thrown away.

"I’ve also approached food art, carving fruits and vegetables or drawing portraits with meals or drinks. I love cooking, so food art allows me to combine my passion for food and cooking with my passion for visual arts.

"My works are mainly inspired by pop-culture: I portray music, cinema, cartoons and comic icons with different materials and techniques.

"I really think that art can come from anywhere and inspiration can come even from the simple things we use every day.

"When we are children we can see in simple things something much more interesting, but growing up we sometimes forget how to do it. I think that art and creativity allows us to return to childhood and play using our imaginations."