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The Visual Creativity of Japanese Bento Boxes Returns with “Face Food Recipes”
October 22, 2009
Contact: Adri Cowan
Telephone: 347-830-6270
New York, NY – October 22, 2009 – Two years ago, Christopher D Salyers’s Face Food brought the curious, cute and infectiously popular phenomenon of charaben, or character bento boxes, into homes across the globe. Face Food Recipes builds upon the success of Face Food with a new collection of charaben that also includes informative How-To Guides for making lunches that look like your favorite animated pop culture figures.
Along with stunningly detailed examples of fancy foodstuff, Salyers has compiled a glossary of Japanese culinary terms and techniques geared toward making sure you understand how to make rice balls, dye eggs and slice seaweed.
Japanese icons like Astro Boy, Hello Kitty, Zelda, Naruto and Miyazaki’s Ponyo, along with iconic Western animated characters like Spider-Man, Care Bears and even a Velvet Underground album cover replica-in-rice, fill the pages of this bright How-To Guide.
“The bento phenomenon has hit the West over the head like a cartoon hammer – and those that have been in the know think it’s ridiculous that bentos are only now getting the attention they deserve, both for presentation and nutritional value,” says author Christopher D Salyers.
“Face Food Recipes shows every person outside of Japan how a little time and love can transform something as simple as lunch into pure edible cuteness. You needn’t travel to Tokyo for personal food craft lessons from humble housewives. I did that. Now everyone can use Face Food Recipes to have a little fun designing food in their kitchen!”
About Christopher D Salyers
Christopher D Salyers is a Brooklyn-based writer and book designer. He is the author of Face Food, Face Food Recipes and the forthcoming Vending Machines: Coined Consumerism. He is the recipient of a 2004 AIGA award for Book Design.
About Mark Batty Publisher
Mark Batty Publisher (http://www.markbattypublisher.com) is an independent publisher dedicated to making distinctive books on the visual art of communicating, showcasing the visual power and innovation of contemporary culture in all of its varied poses. Today, the visual comes at us from more places than ever, and its dissemination is faster and more advanced every year. Books from Mark Batty Publisher capture this acceleration on the pages of every book. Affordable, well designed, thoughtfully created, and produced to last, MBP books are artful products that readers want to hold onto forever.
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Face Food Recipes
By Christopher D Salyers
Mark Batty Publisher
Page Count: 80 pages
Size: 4.75 x 6.75 inches
Format: Casebound
Publication Date: October 2009
Price: $14.95
ISBN: 978-0-9819600-2-9
For a review copy, more information, or to schedule an interview with Christopher D Salyers, contact Adri Cowan, +1 347.830.6271, adri@markbattypublisher.com.