BITTERSWEET

Bittersweet is an edible sculpture designed for the 2011 Peter Norton Family Christmas Art Project, an annual artist commission to produce a limited-edition gift. The piece is composed of twenty-five different chocolates ranging in intensity from a bitter blend, with 91 percent cocoa, to a sweet single-bean-origin Madagascar milk chocolate with 33 percent cocoa. Each sample is cast in the form of its numerical calorie content. The height of each chocolate varies according to its caloric value. Consequently, the sweetest chocolate is three times taller than the most bitter. The grid forms a diagonal gradient of light milk chocolate to dark bitter chocolate.

The chocolates were presented in a vacuum-formed plastic case and accompanied by a USB memory stick containing an interactive guide that identifies the name, geographic origin, tasting notes, nutritional data, and history behind each sample. A series of tasting itineraries enables gift recipients to navigate the grid of chocolates by moving from east to west by origin, from oldest to newest, or in order of increasing indulgence.

Bittersweet was created in collaboration with pastry chef and chocolatier Richard Capizzi.