A Chef Who Paints Opening Night - Wednesday 22 June 2022,6pm

Content from UpNext.com.au. Please don't scrape website.

Presented by The ArtSHINE community, A Chef Who Paints is a solo exhibition by Sweet Art by Jenni that shares Jenni's love and exuberance for life through her experiences as a chef and artist.

Jenni Rogers is an Australian artist and chef, who is based in the beautiful Byron Bay Hinterland, Australia and delights in creating paintings that combine two of her favourite things - cooking and art. Her beautiful art starts with the basic ingredients of flour, cream, organic eggs, and spices, which are transformed through watercolours, oils, and charcoals.

'When I think about food it pulls at my heartstrings.'

Jenni's art brings a reminiscence of unique eateries, picturesque cafes, exotic street scenes, and homey kitchens where you can smell the mouth-watering aromas, taste the exotic and home-cooked favourites, and hear the audible joy of people enjoying a meal together.

Jenni bought her first cafe when she was just 16 years old - The Chelsea Teahouse in Avalon. It was only later in life that she discovered her love for painting. This love is what lead Jenni to go on to create artworks depicting beautifully presented food. Jenni is in her element whilst baking beautiful cakes, biscuits, and pastries and turning them into works of art.

She finds all aspects of food and cafes very emotional.

'I often associate memories with food. I know when I bake bread, I think of my dad in the kitchen baking these enormous loaves for our family, my Grandma and I making little, sweet jam mushrooms with icing and pastry stalks and my mum and I destroyed the kitchen through cake decorating, every bowl and appliance in the house was used. Our favourite recipes remind us of our loved ones - when we create them, in a way, it brings them back to us. My paintings are a way of capturing those images.'

Jenni's creative process starts with feelings that she gains from the observation of these subjects. Then her mind starts to envision how it could look, usually painting from still life, photos or real life as in plein air.

'When I bake the texture and colours consume me - there is never-ending inspiration from these subjects. It's life and it is a part of us all. You can't live without food!'