The socio-political sculpture of guerrilla street-artist, Will Coles, will be featured in the upcoming curated exhibition Art + Food: Beyond the Still Life at Brenda May Gallery in Sydney. Coles employs traditional sculptural techniques to manipulate found objects and explore contemporary issues, specifically over consumerism. The sculpture pictured below titled First World Food (burgers) was produced specifically for the Art + Food exhibition and was made by casting McDonalds hamburgers – combining several into a large stack to produce the ultimate icon in fast food gluttony. The skull and crossbones depicted on the top of the burger is best understood when paired with the statement by Coles,

“Because you know it’s shit, it lacks nutrition, is mostly fat, sugar and carbs. Because this represents the height of our civilisation, shit food made by people on shit pay that fucks your health. Do you want fries with that?”

– Will Coles, 2012
Will Coles, First World Food (burgers) (2012), cast resin, edition of 1, 10 x 10 x 10 cm

The sculptures by Will Coles can be found throughout the streets of Sydney and have been installed around Australia and Europe. His work is not limited to the street and he has exhibited extensively and has been acquired by major corporate and Regional Gallery collections. Coles received his Honours Bachelor of Arts at the Wimbledon and Glasgow Schools of Art and his new series, First World Food can be viewed at Brenda May Gallery starting on Tuesday 2 October as part of the curated exhibition Art + Food: Beyond the Still Life. Because Will Coles is a vegetarian, a meat-free burger recipe is paired with this artwork.

Halloumi Burgers

Adapted from Veggie Belly
Yield: 4 burgers

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
small pinch of salt (keep in mind that halloumi is very salty)
1/4 teaspoon ground pepper
1 small eggplant, cut into 1/2-inch slices
1 small block of halloumi, divided into 4 slices
4 buns, sliced and toasted
pesto (amount varies according to taste – I like a lot of pesto on my burger)
handful of spinach
tomato slices

In a large dish, combine the olive oil, balsamic vinegar, oregano, salt and pepper. Mix well and add the sliced eggplant, turning over once so both sides are coated in the oil/vinegar mixture.

Heat your grill pan (or a frying pan will make do) over high heat and add the eggplant slices in one layer. Grill (or fry) for six minutes on each side, flipping once. Remove from grill (or pan) and set aside. Next add the slices of halloumi and cook for 2 minutes on each side.

To assemble burgers, spread desired amount of pesto on one or both sides of the toasted bun. Add the eggplant, halloumi, spinach and tomato slices. Serve immediately.