The art of food styling

The art of food styling

PEOPLE

Words by Bak Se-hwan

Photos by Bae Soo-kyung

To food stylist and researcher Roh Young-hee, cooking is a performance. Communicating and sharing the cooking process with the diner amplify the pleasure. Perhaps because of this, the table and the cooking area share the same space at the Roh Young-hee food studio. Handmade crockery are lined up against the wall behind the table. “The pleasure of dining while seeing the cooking process with your own eyes, and the ability to communicate with the diners, they are one of a big appeal of this place,” she said. The wooden table and the square pieces further give the space a feel reminiscent of a neatly folded blanket. And here, Roh Young-hee was giving a lecture to the ceramic artists of Icheon City when Krafts arrived.

Krafts : Wood is a major theme in the interior design.

Roh Young-hee : A space is a reflection of the person who occupies it. I favor wood and metals, and ceramics and wood are inseparable. Also I like the natural look.

Krafts : What is your idea of an ideal kitchen?

Roh Young-hee : I think a good kitchen is one that faces the dining room or the living room, one with short lines of movement and plenty of storage.

Krafts : The open storage unit that fills an entire wall is very impactful. Are they all expensive crockery?

Roh Young-hee : An expensive plate is not necessarily a useful plate. There are cheap but useful plates, just like expensive but useless plates. I choose my plates based on their uses and design, rather than the price, but they were all made by ceramic artists. They weren’t collected over night. I began this line of work in 1993, so that collection has been building up since then.

Krafts : Do you have a preferred product line?

Roh Young-hee : Simple is best. I prefer simple designs. I’m not a collector. I buy plates to use them, and if a design is too elaborate it is difficult to make the food stand out. Of course there are trends, but these days I really appreciate the moon jar designs. Both the food and the plate stands out. Plate designs with a lot of pictures or patterns may be good as display objects, but it’s difficult to match them with food. Also, there are many black crockery, but that is also a difficult color. It is as chic as a color, but not suitable for food plates. Although it is good as a focal point in a course meal.

Krafts : Icheon ceramics and craft items are often considered as decorations. What so is the aspect of craft pieces that appeals to you?

Roh Young-hee : Consumers consider the size and weight of a plate, and often people ask whether ceramic plates break easily. For consumers, the price tag, which is not small, is always a factor. So I think it’s important to use ceramics from a young age. If you become used to the feel, the stable weight and their beauty, you realize that ceramics are not far removed from everyday life. I hope a lot of handmade crockery are produced for children.

Krafts What did you stress in the food styling lecture for the artists?

Roh Young-hee : Isn’t the best design one that offers good utility? Being true to the basics, the right size and the ability to be matched with other plates. For Korean crockery, we need the rice bowl, soup bowl, spoon and chopstick base, cup and plates for side dishes, but (artists) start with large plates or bowls. I think simple and useful pieces should come first and then plates that act as the focal point should be added. What I mean is that plates that are too elaborate or neither this or that, they don’t bring the customer back. Also, looking at other people’s creations is just as important as what one produces oneself.

Krafts : Is there a food styling tip non-professionals need to remember?

Roh Young-hee : At home, using crockery that is slightly larger than needed makes the food stand out. Using a plate size of your hand for food that could be placed in a small dish makes the food seem much more splendid than they really are.