Author Description

Marina Schinz, photographer and coauthor of the acclaimed Visions of Paradise and The Gardens of Russell Page, has been photographing sweets collected during her travels over the past fifteen years in the United States, England, France, Italy, Spain, Portugal, Switzerland, Germany, Mexico, and Japan. Found in neighborhood bakeries, deluxe gourmet shops, and in sidewalk food stalls, these charming edibles include marzipan pigs, gingerbread Buddhas, chocolate trains, red quince paste sausages, ice cream fruit cornucopias, and a 25-inch-high wedding cake, covered in masses of roses, irises, poppies, lilies, tulips, and pansies - all made entirely of sugar. Following an introduction in which she discusses the prestige and honor historically given to sugar, Marina Schinz describes each of the sweets, giving their place of origin, maker, dimensions, and brief method of creation. In addition, she provides information about the culinary history and lore of the confections, noting the connections between this edible art and broader social changes and concerns.