Work of Art: the making of a salad

Week 12 - Discussion Post (also on FB)

The “compelling experience” I am in the throes of investigating is related to the making (and eating) of a salad. In this installment for the “Work of Art” series, I highlight my own salad-making skills, which are applied to the creation of a salad intended for my husband. In the end, I hope to have designed a salad that makes my husband’s salad-eating experience more compelling, something he wants to dig into rather than dismiss.

For this investigation, I have selected three different salads (common, curious, and compelling) to make, munch on, and mull over. The common salad consists of very basic ingredients (iceberg lettuce, tomatoes, cucumbers, and store-bought ranch dressing). The curious salad is comprised of what could be considered “odd” ingredients (baby spinach, red onion, dried cranberries or fresh strawberries, feta cheese, and homemade poppyseed dressing). The compelling salad is what one might call a heartier heap of ingredients (Romaine lettuce, green onions, avocado, mandarin oranges, crushed pineapple, grilled chicken thighs, and homemade honey-mustard dressing). A large part of the design of this experience involves ingredient selection. I think there is an art of choosing appealing / appetizing ingredients (planning) and ingredients that complement one another in color and flavor.

Once ingredients are selected, composition comes into play. I explore how each of the ingredients is cut (preparation) and subsequently combined with other ingredients (presentation). In addition to combining ingredients, I look at serving options of presentation, which include plating, utensils, and complementary condiments (dressings and garnishing).

With respect to the nature of the experience, I studied my husband’s reaction in order to gain an understanding of what aspect of form (verb or noun) affected him most significantly. Also, I investigated how the nature and design of the salad impacts his overall eating experience. While I have yet to complete this part of the project, I would like to conduct a post-eating interview. My husband is not keen on having his face featured in the film, but maybe I can get him to record his thoughts in an audio recording. If we could boil (or toss, as the case may be) each of the salad-eating experiences into single-syllable, onomatopoeic summaries, I expect my husband to say “Hmph!” “Hmmm??” and “Mmmm…” respectively.

I’d love any and all feedback you have to offer. Questions, suggestions, criticisms are welcome!!