Faking It uncovers the glue, instant mash and unsavoury secrets of food photography

Photography is rarely an honest medium, particularly in the delectable yet deceitful world of food photography. To make things look delicious, photographers and art directors have many a trick up their sleeves, and set designer and art director Sandy Suffield has decided to fling open the doors and reveal the tricks of the trade. In the series Faking It, she worked with photographer Dan Matthews and food stylist Jack Sargeson to create a body of work that manages to both subvert and comply with the nuances of high-end food shots.

We see how the “ice cream” is in fact made out of instant mash potato and champagne made out of water, soy sauce and Alka-Seltzer. Behind the apparent glamour lies glue, clever lighting and talcum powder; proving in a beautiful and playful way that things are very rarely as they seem. “Faking It was an idea I had prompted by how food styling used to have to factor in the heat from lights (this is obviously no longer a problem) – so it forced food stylists into making ice cream from instant mashed potato and milk from PVA glue,” Sandy explains.

Sandy has previously worked at Pentagram and Apple, and has been creative director at Wolff Olins for the last three years.