In the final days of the presidential campaigns, the faces of the candidates are everywhere.
Newspaper and television are two normal mediums for these political figures, but one art student used something different.
He printed the faces of the presidential and vice presidential candidates on slices of individually packaged imitation American cheese.
The piece American Cheese -- Politics on Food is on display through election day, Nov. 4, at Forward Foods, 123 E. Main St.
University of Oklahoma photography senior Esteban Pulido decided to try printing on cheese for a class project.
"I wanted to kind of print photographs on something that was not traditional," he said. Slices of imitation cheese seemed the perfect size for a photo.
He began experimenting with chemicals in a gel to make the cheese photosensitive. It was a frustrating process, Pulido said.
"It became very kind of gooey and kind of sloppy," he said. But he pressed on.
"The first attempt, it was something like 18 or 16 hours straight in the darkroom," he said.
He was finally successful in printing black and white photos of the heads of Sen. Barack Obama, Sen. John McCain, Sen. Joe Biden and Gov. Sarah Palin onto the cheese.
So he e-mailed Forward Foods co-owner Steve Reynolds who agreed to display the cheese on one of the grocery's shelves.
"I was so charmed by it," Reynolds said of the art. "It's a really interesting deal, and you know, it's one that makes people smile."
Most customers enjoy the presidential cheese, but Reynolds said there have been a few dissenters.
"Some people are confused because it's on one of our regular shelves," he said. "It's not in the context of an art gallery."
The cheese is refrigerated at night, but left out during the day. The plastic around the cheese is starting to curl and the cheese is starting to separate. Fortunately the art is in a glass case, because Pulido said the chemicals he used on the cheese smell awful.
But people have given Pulido positive feedback about the project, he said.
"People really enjoy being grossed out by it, I guess," he said. Pulido is taking photos of the cheese every day to monitor the decomposition process and will post them on his blog at http://estebanpulido.blogspot.com/2008/10/american-cheese.html.
The photos of his art project have already been picked up by one online art gallery.
Pulido said he hopes the cheese makes people examine how they view the presidential and vice presidential candidates.
"To remind everyone that this is happening and it's serious but also we can laugh at it and look at cheese in a different way."
Julianna Parker 366-3541 jparker@normantranscript.com
Local news
Related Photos
Discussion
Cheesy tribute reflects presidential candidates
- Local news
-
-
Bonds awarded at low interest
Norman residents most likely will not notice any property tax increase from bonds awarded to an underwriter by the Norman City Council on Tuesday night, city Finance Director Anthony Francisco said....
-
Police link man to multiple rapes
Cleveland County prosecutors are expected to file as many as 20 felony charges ranging from burglary to first-degree rape and forcible oral sodomy against a former OU student who police say confessed to sexual assaults on Norman college ...
-
Preliminary hearing set for former OU professor
By Joel Pruett On Tuesday, the preliminary hearing for a former University of Oklahoma professor suspected of rape and sexual abuse of and lewd acts with children was set for May 10....
-
School board results
The unofficial results of yesterday night’s election are in, with no close races and no reported complications with new machinery and ballots. Voters largely favored incumbents where applicable. Results are as follows: · Lexington ...
-
Pedestrian in serious condition
A 64-year-old Norman man improved from critical condition to serious condition Tuesday night. He remains in OU Medical Center after being struck Monday while crossing 12th Avenue Northeast, north of Main Street....
-
Pekingese becomes America’s top dog
NEW YORK — This Peke was at his peak. Malachy the Pekingese wobbled off with best in show Tuesday night at the Westminster Kennel Club, becoming America’s dog to the delight of an adoring crowd that called his name....
-
Castiglione speaks at All Saints
Earlier this month, Catholic schools nationwide celebrated Catholic Schools week with various themed activities and fundraisers....
-
NPS to purchase radios
The FCC killed the wideband star, and it’s about to cost Norman Public Schools Schools up to $200,000....
-
Marc Heitz raises nearly $32K for hungry children
Spinning around an ice skating rink, many Norman residents contributed to raising nearly $32,000 to benefit the Regional Food Bank of Oklahoma during the past holiday season....
-
City council considers transportation bonds
Tonight at 6:30, the Norman City Council will vote on whether to approve bids on transportion bonds totaling $33 million. If approved, the bond package will go to voters on June 26. The council also will consider whether to commission a ...
- More Local news Headlines
-
Bonds awarded at low interest
