Local artist Betty Rosado celebrates local chefs in Let them Eat Cake, her photographic reinterpretation of Norman Rockwell's painting Freedom from Want.
The photo will be showcased as part of American Chronicles: The Art of Norman Rockwell, an exhibit at the Museum of Art | Fort Lauderdale. While the Rockwell exhibit opened in November, the museum has yet to announce when Let them Eat Cake will be up for viewing.
Museum director Irvin Lippman commissioned Rosado to recreate several of Rockwell's paintings as part of the exhibit, including The Gossips, Rosie the Riveter and Muscle Man.
"Like Norman, we use the same things," Rosado said. "We use people in our communities and talk about good things. It's all about good things and I think food is one of those things."
Miachael's Genuine pastry chef Hedy Goldsmith was the original inspiration for Rosado's take on the Rockwell dinner scene.
"Hedy was going to be my muse for that because I think she's a rock star," said Rosado. "I thought, if I get Hedy to bake and put people at the table with her ... So who do I put at this table? And I wanted her to be surrounded by chefs."
Neither Goldsmith nor her delectable desserts are in the shot. It features chefs Michael Schwartz, Michelle Bernstein, Ken Lyon, Azul's Clay Conley and Nobu's Thomas Buckley. In the picture, Schwartz's wife Tamara holds a cake instead of a turkey.
"Do you know how hard it is to get Thomas, Clay, Michelle, Kenny and Michael? That shoot was scheduled like four times. It's the shot that almost got me to drink," said Rosado.
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