Food Model Craftsman | Katsuji Kaneyama

When Japanese people as a whole were not yet accustomed to dining out stepping into a restaurant or cafeteria still meant not knowing what was available or how much it cost Instead of having customers look at the menu inside staff prepare something for them to see before entering Nowadays people are generally becoming more accustomed to the restaurant industry so the key is to make dishes look appetizing and evoke a desire to eat them Still it's probably important that this time it looks even more delicious than the real thing A staff sample is essentially a replica of an ingredient or a dish in simple terms This will become silicon Mold-making silicone First prepare the original then pour silicone over it to create a mold pour vinyl resin into that female mold to shape it and finally add color The rough approach is to develop various ingredients and then compile them into a menu Enhanced slightly for a more appetizing appearance with added sheen to finish—this is what you get Color is truly the most important factor for instance there's absolutely no such thing as a perfectly white pear Even when trying to accurately depict a mochi I think people would still perceive it as white Among them there are subtle shades that include a hint of brown or a touch of black or a bit of yellow—very delicate variations in color For example tuna even when used as red meat in sushi isn't actually red so we mix various colors together and creating a single color often involves more than just one hue I don't think there's anything that can be made in a single color on the opposite side It's purely a matter of experience now—when you have a specific color in mind and wonder which colors to mix together to achieve it From experience mastering the ability to instantly express what you envision is what makes a true artisan—how clearly you hold the image the image of the color the image of the ingredients and how well you remember them The image in my mind plus that extra spark of inspiration from actually seeing the real thing through photographs—that's something we always do when creating great products Next of course what really matters is plating —techniques that highlight crisp textures in vegetables because even if the colors are perfect it's the presentation that brings it all together For instance if sprouts are described as better or worse it might make them seem unappetizing so I really wonder if that matters at all —let's just keep going with this approach You see first we slowly move down gently swaying toward ourselves When it comes to manufacturing I still want to create things that truly astonish and move our customers something that makes them say "wow " and I'd love to keep pushing toward even more impressive results Pull it up—yes got it—don’t grip too tightly gently roll it in—after all it’s not just about presenting it as a dish— make it look delicious too—wow what’s this I think of it as a sample designed to catch the customer's eye that kind of thing—delicious delicious well not exactly no Delicious delicious Among my experiences there was one where the cup ice cream spoon lifted up on its own and another where the ice cream spilled yet I could still make it myself After creating it we also considered practical uses—like turning spilled ice cream into a smartphone stand—while developing the product Experiencing hardship in your youth taught me that speed and plating technique often conflict with the final quality— rushing inevitably compromises the outcome Even if you take your time and produce high-quality work there are always various issues that can cause delays in meeting deadlines Although we're often praised in a way that sounds very artistic we don't actually make art—we're craftsmen after all and even in sample creation that's what we remain If you're unsure go see the real thing right away You're saying that even if you try to create something just by thinking about it in your head you often don't end up with a good result so you really need to look closely at the real thing Another thing is that you must be able to make anything ordered and only when you can confidently say you’ll definitely deliver it—never “I can’t do this”—are you truly ready to stand on your own It's not about creating art it's about making things efficiently and with quality For craftsmen it 's ultimately about that balance—artists after all take their time to produce something truly good I think it's important to make good things quickly which is what craftsmen strive for