Jeff Nebeker
was one
of the first Funk ceramic artists to perfect the use of pastry tools
in clay sculpture. Finding the formula to adhere the wet clay squeezed
from pastry tools onto the sculptural, hand built clay body of his
form, and an interest in food subjects from 1970’s Pop Art, has led
him to produce an amazing array of life-like cakes, confections and
portraits of artists as pastry chefs and apprentices.
Nebeker is both an
accomplished ceramist and pastry chef. He draws visual parallels
between frosting, decorating and baking a cake to hand building,
glazing and firing a clay piece, as far as patience, creativity, and
technical skill are involved. His work acknowledges the fine art
involved with being a professional pastry chef and cake decorator, as
well as reference Pop Artists, Claes Oldenburg and Wayne Thiebaud,
among others. His figurative works are ceramic portraits, which
represent artists who are friends of Nebeker or composite caricatures
of people, as he instructs them in the basics of the craft. Bakery
processes become integral in the finishes of the portraits, while
other pieces are demonstrative of accomplished lessons in color
theory, decoration, and the use of pastry tools.
Powdered sugar, candy
sprinkles, frosting and decorative flowers adorn Nebeker’s pastries
as well as figures. He blends fine art and technical craft into a
colorful array of sculptures, which are a feast for the eyes.
