This weekend, visitors to the Pennsylvania Farm Show can enjoy the impressive 1,000-pound butter sculpture of a cow, a main attraction created by artists Jim Victor and Marie Pelton. This sculpture contains enough butter to make 96,000 pancakes, as estimated by the American Dairy Association North East. Victor and Pelton, both graduates of the prestigious Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts, bring a sense of whimsy and joy to their creative process, along with elements of trial and error, messiness, patience, preparation, and physical labor.
Their journey as sought-after food sculptors began with a unique opportunity involving chocolate sculptures of actors Mickey Rooney and Ann Miller for a Broadway show in 1980. Despite a near-disaster when Miller accidentally knocked over one of the chocolate busts, Victor’s quick thinking and a chocolatier’s help saved the day.
Since creating their first butter sculpture for the Pennsylvania Farm Show in 1995, Victor and Pelton have continued this tradition annually, with Pelton joining the artistic endeavor in 2008. Their partnership with the American Dairy Association North East has been commended for celebrating dairy industry traditions and products through their exceptional butter sculptures.
Living in Conshohocken, Pennsylvania, Victor and Pelton have collaborated on diverse projects, including creating butter sculptures of cows cheering for the Red Sox and crafting busts of NFL draft picks using Subway ingredients. Their boundless creativity and dedication to their craft have garnered admiration and support from the community and organizations like the American Dairy Association North East.
During the holiday season, the talented duo Jim Victor and Marie Pelton lent their sculpting skills to create a series of festive sculptures for the popular fast-casual chain, Chipotle, displayed in the Christmas windows at one of its New York City locations.
One lucky contest winner had the unique opportunity to have their likeness sculpted from bacon by Victor and Pelton. The process involved meticulous cooking and manipulation of bacon strips to achieve the desired colors and textures. After the sculpture was completed, the winner decided to showcase it behind a curtain in his bar, charging a nominal fee for curious patrons to view it, creating a temporary attraction.
Pelton highlighted the challenges of working with food as a sculpting medium, emphasizing the need for controlled environments when sculpting materials such as butter and chocolate. The nature of working with perishable ingredients like bacon poses additional difficulties due to the grease content, requiring constant replacement of sandwich and burrito components for chains prioritizing freshness.
Both Victor and Pelton acknowledged the ephemeral nature of their edible art, drawing parallels to Buddhist monks who embrace the impermanence of their creations. They view their sculpting process as a performance, knowing that their intricate works will only be enjoyed for a brief period of time before being consumed or recycled.
Interestingly, sculpting butter holds cultural significance beyond its culinary application. The American Dairy Association North East notes that butter sculpting is an ancient Tibetan Buddhist tradition, where yak butter and dye are used to create symbolic representations for various religious observances.
The artists emphasized sustainability in their craft, ensuring that excess materials from their sculptures are repurposed efficiently. Organic waste generated during sculpting can be processed in anaerobic digesters, yielding electricity or fertilizer for agricultural use. Victor and Pelton have donated butter remnants to colleges that convert kitchen oil into energy and biofuel, promoting environmental responsibility in their artistic practice.
Upon completion of their monumental 1,000-pound butter sculpture at the Pennsylvania Farm Show, the artists arranged for the butter to be recycled through a methane digester, generating enough energy to power a household for three days. The remaining sculptural elements, such as the cow’s armature, may find a new home in Victor and Pelton’s yard, adding to their eclectic collection of artistic creations.
For those interested in exploring this unique intersection of art and culinary craftsmanship, opportunities to experience Americana through butter sculpting can be arranged with the artists. For further inquiries, contact Phaedra Tretthan via email at ptrethan@usatoday.com or connect on social media platforms.
This article was originally published on USA TODAY and celebrates the creative ingenuity and sustainable practices employed by artists like Jim Victor and Marie Pelton in their edible sculpting endeavors.
