In lard sculpting, we use styrofoam to form the basic shapes, and using skewers and toothpicks, we connect/join all the shapes together, then we cover the styrofoam with a thin layer of lard, which is not at all easy to work with, but it is an interesting experience to work with it for the first time. After that, we used various tools (e.g. cake modeling tools) to create texture on the thin layer of lard.
I am very glad LCB Ottawa included fruit carving and lard sculpture in our Superior Pastry course, because I think exposure to these skills and art forms really helps to stimulate our imagination and creativity.
Chef A's lard sculpture, which he made in order to show us basic skills in lard sculpting
Here's what my classmates and I created in under 3 hours in our practical classes (with some help from Chef A, of course)... from cartoon characters (Mike from Monsters Inc.) to animals (Penguin, Crocodile, Polar Bear) to objects (Chef's Hat, Handbag and Stilleto):
This is my lard sculpture: A fan and an embroidery hoop. Why these two particular objects? Personal reasons, which I will not elaborate here. (No, I don't do needlework. If you gave me a choice between peeling 200 carrots and doing needlework, I'd choose the 200 carrots any day.)
Notice there is a Star Trek logo on my sculpture. It's not just because I like Star Trek; it is also because I wanted to juxtapose an actual past (people -- particularly women -- in the past used/made silk fans and did embroidery) with an imagined future (Star Trek's imaginary universe, hundreds of years from now). Or, you might even say, arts & crafts versus science fiction...(Yes, I like to think about philosophical questions, even when I am taking a pastry course.)
Anyway, it was a fun workshop. Most of us felt really relaxed by the end of the class, and that was good, because we were starting to stress out about our practical exam coming up next week.
