Food-tastic illustrator Gretchen Roehrs is based in San Francisco, where she spends her time thinking up new recipes for her culinary-inspired works of art. We sat down with Gretchen over a drink and hat a chat about candy, croissants and her obsession with the natural shapes she finds in nature.

What’s your favourite drink at Happy Hour?

A Manhattan! Your background is in fashion.

 

How did you end up creating ‘food couture’?

I studied fashion design in school, and a big part of that was learning to create fashion illustrations. I incorporated food during a lunch one day.

 

Where does the inspiration for the outfits in your designs comes from?

Natural shapes found in nature, specifically in fruits and vegetables, are truly what inspires most of the outfits.

 

Your designs mostly depict healthy foods such as fruits and vegetables. If you had to pick an unhealthy food for a new design—what would it be, and why?

I’d love to use candy, because I have such a sweet tooth.

 

Your quote on JUNIQE says you are “Still playing with food.” What is your favourite dish?

My favorite dish is anything with pasta as the main event.

 

Talk us through your creative process. How does a new artwork take shape from start to finish?

Typically, I see a shape in a vegetable or fruit that reminds me of a garment of sorts, and then I draw the figure around it. I snap a photo and then publish!

Who are you inspired by? How does this person inspire you?

Irving Penn and David Downton have been huge inspirations to my style. The way they capture food and women, respectively, is breathtaking.

 

What gets you out of bed in the mornings?

My beagle Charley makes it difficult to sleep in.

 

Kale or croissants?

On bad days, croissants, and on good days croissants too.

 

Thanks Gretchen!