The true art of making bread

Making bread is a form of art. The ingredients when mixed together produce something greater than the sum of their parts. Baker Xu Hui goes one better; she makes art from bread. In her hands, flour, salt, sugar and olive oil become a palate to mix and create images that stun and amaze.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Xu, 39, a baker based in Guangzhou, Guangdong province, started to turn leftover dough into art.

She produced bread versions of hand gestures, face masks and the iconic melting pocket watch by Salvador Dali shown in The Persistence of Memory.

Her inspiration comes from daily life－the clothes she wore, the vegetables she bought, and even the flowers and grass on the roadside she saw while walking her dog.

The South China Agriculture University graduate changed careers in her mid-30s, from that of a salesperson and a trainer to working in the food sector. She finally found her true calling, and having a degree in agriculture economics and management helped.

"The pandemic gave us plenty of time as we abandoned much unnecessary social contact, and once we had an idea, we had time to achieve it right away," says Xu from Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region.

During the period of social distancing to curb the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic, she started her artistic bread creations, initially with just the hand gestures, alongside her normal baker's work.

Bread comes alive when in the oven. Unlike cookies that keep their shape, bread will change, rise, then take shape. Consequently Xu needs to adjust the dough accordingly.

"The process of making bread is like playing a game. The bakery is my amusement park," Xu says. "A drawing, a pinch of hair or a flower can all inspire me."

One night, Xu had a moment of inspiration－you could say her time had come. She decided to make the melting watch from The Persistence of Memory. After several trials, in the midnight hour, she finally figured out a way to make the bread look like it was flowing, by putting a rolling pin covered with baking paper under the dough.

During the pandemic, she created 70 female portraits, which she named as Her Portraits Made of Bread.

She decorated the bread faces with almost everything she could find, from hats, earrings, to common everyday ingredients, such as tomatoes, pineapples, leaves and even dry instant noodles.

With Xu's adept hands, bread can also create a homage to life's special moments. A newly-married couple ordered dinner from her studio to celebrate their tying the knot. She wanted to give them something special so she referred to their photos and baked something resembling a photo of them, a real pleasant surprise to the couple.

Xu says she believes that innocence, passion, sharpness and a sense of humor are all important for a creator.

Xu has been trying to use bread to cross over into other kinds of art. For that, she is collaborating with illustrators and designers to experiment with new bread-based artworks.

She plans to make bread hats with her milliner friend, and has made a dog collar in shape of a braided hoop for pets in conjunction with a designer.

The breads are all edible and can keep for a long time, if properly stored.

"Guangzhou is quite humid, so I have to leave the dehumidifier on all night or it will go moldy," says Xu.

"During the pandemic, because I couldn't go out to buy fresh flowers, I made bread in decorative shapes and put them in vases."

To Xu, the process of making bread is like "breeding life".

"If you knead the dough well enough, you may even feel its response to you, as if answering your move by revealing various patterns," she says.

Finding herself

Bread plays a central role in all societies. "Avoid those who don't like bread and children" is a Swiss proverb. "Rather a piece of bread with a happy heart than wealth with grief" is an Arab one.

However, it was a long journey and many years until Xu found her lasting passion for it. Before that she had been a salesperson and a trainer who had such a crushing work schedule that she quit and became a freelancer in 2012.

A self-disciplined person, Xu made full use of the time while being a freelancer to explore many of her interests, learning bakery, painting and photography.

Xu started her new career as a baker in 2016. She and her partner opened a studio in Guangzhou called Bigfish & Vee (their nicknames). She focuses on breadmaking and her partner focuses on cooking foreign cuisine.

She also teaches bakery and takes orders for bread.

She recalls the time she went to Beijing to learn from a French baker who has over four decades' experience. She was shocked to see that the dough in his hands was so submissive and practically came alive.

"He was friends with the dough, but the dough in my hands was like a sticky, wet monster," she recounts.

Now she has become a bread master herself, and indulges in spending a great time with "her friend" all day long.

After putting the dough into the oven, Xu likes to sit there and observe the process as the bread is transformed.

"It's like you can see it breathe, and you will never know how it will finally look until it starts to color," Xu says.

"It's like an adventure."

Her videos of making dough became popular on social media platforms and some viewers found watching her play with the dough relaxing.

Her "vegan bread" course was popular among vegetarians at first, then more baking fans joined.

Most of her students are white collar workers, new moms, as well as cafe owners or pastry chefs who want to make bread and create their own memories.