Suspended in the air with a two-metre wingspan, this Australian Sea Eagle sculpture has Newcastle residents’ tummies rumbling.
Made entirely of Tanzanian Dark Chocolate, the 48-kilogram marvel is the first of its kind to be fully “air-borne”.
It’s all part of the Chocol’art Exhibition at the Creator Incubator, made by the Skills Collider team. Led by world-renowned chocolatier Dean Gibson, the exhibit features the giant sea eagle, along with seven suspended chocolate seagulls, which audiences have the chance to move with an interactive spinning wheel.
The crew uses entirely recycled “expired” chocolate unfit for retail use, donated by a company in Sydney.
The unique fusion of mastery and artistic vision comes as an annual exhibition from the Skills Collider team, creating Boneshaker, the world’s first moving chocolate sculpture in 2017, and more recently the Iron Shark, a 200kg sculpture with 21 entirely edible moving parts.
Mr Gibson said the exhibit blended culinary expertise and creative imagination.
“We’ve pushed the boundaries of what’s possible with chocolate, creating an immersive experience that will captivate visitors,” the chocolate master explained.
But, the display represents a mission beyond culinary artistry.
“We’re excited to share this once-in-a-lifetime experience in our hometown Newcastle,” Skills Collider co-creator Shane Williams said.
“The Chocol’art Exhibition not only demonstrates the highest level of skills in chocolate inventiveness and design, it was also created to inspire and create opportunities for the next generation of culinary professionals.”
The team’s mission is to “inspire industry talent, facilitate knowledge sharing and elevate public appreciation of the creativity behind the art of baking and patisserie trades”.
According to Williams, several of their members have used the program’s knowledge to propel their own careers, becoming some of the region’s most successful culinary experts.
The scrumptious sculptures will be on display at The Creator Incubator in Hamilton on 18 and 19 October.
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