5.4.3 Aesthetics, foods and consumers

There have been over many centuries discussions on the relationship between taste and Taste, that is respectively the tasting part of eating and the faculty of discerning and enjoying beauty or other excellence, especially in art. Is the gourmet, the connoisseur of food and wine, appreciating the artistic beauty of food and showing their Taste?

Korsmeyer (1999), discussing taste, said:

    The objects of taste not only are fleeting, they participate in the
    necessary repetition of the practical world of daily life. Eating and all the
    work that is required to make it possible is a repetitious and
    perpetual exercise. But this practical fact does not mean that when eating
    is conducted with reflection and grace it manages to be only pleasant,
    nor does it mean that its pleasures do not reach beyond themselves to
    anything more profound.

Eating has always been a symbolic part of culture and society. Particular foods are symbols of:

     religions, for example bread and wine for Christians;

     countries, for example artistically cut vegetables of Thailand;

     celebrations, for example Easter with hot cross buns, Easter cakes;

     marriage, for example wedding cakes.

But the symbols change, their significance changes and they even move their culture. Example of developing symbols, the pretzel and the croissant, are described in Box 5.2.

Box 5.2 Pretzels and croissants: changing symbols The pretzel is said to have been invented by a monk in the early seventeenth century, who twisted a string of dough and baked it into the curved outline of a brother at prayer, to dispense as a reward for his pupils who recited their catechism correctly. This was called bracciatelli, which translates as 'folded arms'. In some parts of Europe, pretzels are a Lenten food, again the arms resembling the folded arms of the monk. But what are pretzels symbolic of today - the USA and casual living, as snack foods for that social occasion? By understanding the symbols of the pretzels, they take on a new expressive dimension, and the aesthetic apprehension of the pretzel expands. Croissants were invented in Vienna in 1683. In celebration of the successful defence of the city against the Ottoman Turks, Viennese bakers crafted little buns in the shape of the crescent moon on the flag of their enemies. In this case, not only the crescent shape was recognised as denoting the foreign enemy, but also the fact that one devours the crescent re-enacts the defeat of the invaders, and perhaps also represents Christianity overcoming Islam. But today with its expansion through many countries it is seen as representative of France and French breakfasts. Source: Reprinted from Carolyn Korsmeyer: Making Sense of Taste. Copyright © 1999 by Cornell University. Used by permission of the Publisher, Cornell University Press.

Food can be representational symbols such as the pretzels, croissants, hot cross buns, but it can also be abstract symbols, for example fresh vegetables can be the symbol of health, chocolate a symbol of indulgence. Some modern symbols are the golden arches of McDonald's, which in many countries symbolises the affluent American society, and Coca-Cola, which for many teenagers symbolises fun and socialising. There can also be products that are symbols of part of the culture, for example beer is related to rugby, an important part of New Zealand culture. Foods can also be related to art, for example in former times a still life with game birds and fish or baskets of fruit signified good living; and in the 20th century the Campbell's soup can became a well- recognised art icon.

Gourmet chefs of course regard their craft as art, both for the visual effect and the eating qualities. They create food for high-class restaurants and at cere- monial dinners, with a great deal of thought and knowledge, to give an aura of wealth, sophistication as well as unusual eating qualities. They of course do create for vision alone in ice sculptures and sugar confectionery. Their creations can be related to the current art climate or earlier art such as art nouveau. Chefs are increasingly being integrated into the product development process by food manufacturers, ingredient companies and supermarkets to develop complete meals and also to develop new food experiences and taste sensations (Hollingsworth, 2000).

Food can mean beauty. It can be identified as outstanding, for example the gourmet and the wine buff have built up their knowledge so that by looking and tasting they can identify the attributes that identify outstandingly beautiful food and wine. At this level, food has an aesthetic value which can be described and admired. Often the product has been developed over many years, such as French wines; but it can also be developed by new technology as has been seen in the wines, developed in the last 20 years in Australia and New Zealand, which have won many medals and can command high prices. Food products can also be associated with beauty; for example all the diet and special foods which are claimed to give beauty to the eater.

Like all art, food does go through fashions, but may not be so directly connected with fashions as clothing, houses and furnishings. A Victorian menu for an important event is very different from the menu at a ceremonial dinner today; the three tier, iced Victorian wedding cake is very different from some of today's wedding cakes, shaped in the form of two hearts, which have soft icing on carrot or chocolate cake. Food fashions do not change very quickly, unlike clothing; except for the gimmick foods associated with a TV programme or a film. But today there seems to be much faster changes, for example in coffee shops, ethnic restaurants and special foods where promotions and advertising are persuading the consumers that there is a new fashion in eating places and they need to change. An example is the recent expansion internationally of coffee houses, which have changed the plain cup of coffee into a range of coffee types, and made it fashionable to go to a coffee house for that casual hot drink. Fashion changes thrive in a group that accepts change (Zelanek, 1999); so with the fast- moving international changes occurring today, one would expect fashions in food to become more important.

But what does aesthetics mean in product development? The design of food packaging through the past 50 years has been very much related to developments in art. The graphics on the can of soup have developed from the simple, plain, printing, through the cartoon type illustration, the representational picture of the food, the inclusion of the consumers with the food, to the showing of raw materials and the ready-to-serve. There have also been some abstract designs during the years. However, food products in general have not tended to go along the aesthetic path and there have been some disasters where main-line food companies have tried to branch into gourmet foods. Perhaps this is the time to join aesthetics with modern technology in designing what are called more customised new products, identified more clearly as foods with Taste and not just taste. The success of wines and cheeses as aesthetic products could be expanded to other product types and in particular to future new products.

Think Break 1. Identify five foods that are religious symbols. 2. Study five paintings, one from each of the 16th, 17th, 18th, 19th and     20th centuries, that show foods and decide what they are saying.     How has food changed over the years? 3. How has art changed during the past ten years? What direction could     this give to food design? 4. Identify foods that symbolise today: health, fun, luxury, good company,     wickedness. How could you build up a new diet food to symbolise the     ethics in your market? 5. Contrast the aesthetics of a wine with the aesthetics of a fruit juice,     using two products with which you are familiar. How could the juice be     given an aesthetic value the same as the wine? Who could be the target     market for the new fruit juice?