Yogurt-Ghost Fairy Tales by Natalie Eve Garrett

The Juniper Tree (Yogurt-Ghost Fairy Tale) by Natalie Eve Garrett

Yes. Fairy tale art in yogurt. Some artists, visionaries, oracles, call them what you will,  work in tea leaves, others in eggs, some in entrails but this one sees visions in yogurt.

Red Riding Hood by Natalie Eve Garrett
Heh - she's in a hot sauce cloak! Great pun. And more of a challenge for the Wolf methinks. ;)

Apparently fine artist Natalie Eve Garrett not only works in regular paint media but also (it appears) in soy sauce, molasses and Sriracha (hot sauce) with a pinch of this and a pinch of that for details...  but primarily it all begins with yogurt. You could say these are kitchen-inspired fairy tales, edible tales, consumable tales, transient tales and interestingly also you could say they're corruptible tales... because these are, quite literally ALIVE!

Goldilocks by Natalie Eve Garrett

Swirling her condiments into wonderful little tales, she regularly posts her edible art on one of my new favorite online places to visit, The Hairpin, and has (happily for us) created a two-part series (so far) of fairy tale yogurt surprises that she shared.

The Willful Child by Natalie Eve Garrett

The ephemeral nature of these little pieces makes us want to consider these tales in a different, more direct manner than usual, way. And this is especially so considering the ones she's chosen to create: Goldilocks, Rapunzel, Little Red Riding Hood, Snow White, The Juniper Tree, The Willful Child, The Little Mermaid.

The Little Mermaid by Natalie Eve Garrett

The visceral nature of the tales becomes self-evident when you see them portrayed in a medium that spoils so quickly and is, in truth, breaking down to it's elements before your (very) eyes.

Juniper Tree (detail) by Natalie Eve Garrett

Whatever the case, this art definitely has an expiration date so we're very grateful for cameras to capture the awesome so we can share.

Rapunzel by Natalie Eve Garrett

I highly recommend clicking on the links - HERE for Part I & HERE for Part II - to see the detail photos (it's really quite amazing). A different perspective (and serendipitous reflection) on a close-up on Rapunzel gives you a whole new insight to the story:

Rapunzel detail by Natalie Eve Garrett

There's another very cool thing about this medium I wanted to share. Like sand animation (but more messy and less forgiving) certain stories can be illustrated with a vibrancy a static painting just doesn't hold.

Like this, in The Siamese Hair-Twin Ghosts (read the captions for the story):

Once upon a time there were two ghosts connected only by their hair. They got along well, and mostly didn't mind being bound together. 

But sometimes one wanted braids and the other wanted to wear her hair down, and they'd silently shriek and pull their hair...

... until they were all tangled up in knots.  

About herself and her work Natalie says:

I'm interested in making work that conveys a sense of humor and magic, with a disarming twist. 
I grew up outside Washington, D.C., and was influenced by tangles of woods, The Brother's Grimm, the Blue Ridge Mountains and Buffy the Vampire Slayer. After studying art at Yale, I went on to receive my MFA from the University of Pennsylvania’s School of Design. Currently I live and work in a little town outside D.C. along the Potomac River. My art can be seen regularly on TheHairpin.com and in private collections.

I highly recommend browsing her posts on The Hairpin for other yogurt-surprises. She has a sharp yet whimsical sense of humor and it's just delightful to see.

Snow White by Natalie Eve Garrett

And I want more. ("MORE??!?") Yes! Please?

(I will also NEVER look at my condiments the same way again...)

Natalie's website is HERE, her Etsy shop is HERE and The Hairpin, where she can often be found, is HERE.

PS Aw- snap! I see Neatorama JUST postsed these today. (At this writing.) Never mind - the more people see Ms. Garrett's condiment creativity, the more she'll be inspired to do (we hope!). If you like her work, be sure to let her know.