Tuesday, March 26, 2013

Project Space Essay: Art and Food Within the Bakery


Art and Food Within the Bakery Reminds the Hispanic Heritage
The Hispanic community maintains their culture and its significance through its well-known and various unique meals filled with delicious and savory flavors that identify each Central, South, or Mexican village. Each heritage treasures its own special meals that represents where they come from such as tamales for the Mexican people, Pupusas for Salvadorian community, and the list goes on. However, sweets are another cultural significance for the Latino culture that is overlooked, while other Latino communities retain their hometown through all their traditional food and desserts. I realized that some places are preserving their cultural importance from disappearing, even when it means that specific places prevent the Latino communities from forgetting their meals or artwork that surrounds that community. Furthermore, the relationship between architecture and food is an importance to the Latino community because it symbolizes the appreciation and acknowledgment of people’s hometown. El Pavo Bakeries provide delicate and sweet desserts for Glendale communities, allowing special appreciation to Hispanic culture because of the flavors and texture of the products that resembles preserving their origins, but the absence of art in the bakery significance of the products within the Hispanic community.
El Pavo Bakeries is located in Northern Glendale populated with Latino members that allows them to grasp the rich, sweet, sugar-powdered breads that hints people to remember where they came from. Some cultural places incorporate the architecture and their products to create a significant response that relates to the Latino community. However, the bakery was not set accordingly to create a connection between the art and products. As I entered the bakery, the warm scent of the room alerted my senses to walk towards the cases of sweet, sugar-coded breads, but directly from my view was three casings of glass slide doors filled with cold beverages like Coca-Cola, Sprite, and few gallons of lemonade. The second case had water, Monster drinks, Kerns, Arizona, Minute Maid, Gatorade, and a Mexican brand of orange juice called Tampico. The third case had cans of Sprite, Diet Coke, Coca-Cola, Squirt varied in sizes. The cases above the soft drinks had three piñatas. There was a fourth case that had gallons and cartons of milk. Adjacent to the milk glass case stood an aluminum shelf that had edible ingredients like oils, sugars, Abuelita Mexican style chocolate for drinking, and Maruchan soups. On my right hand side, next to the aluminum stand was aluminum, rectangular shaped pot which is used to serve food while a burner lies beneath the pot heating the food. Following the pot was a microwave and next to it was a telephone with a fax machine, a computer, and a Mexican candy compartment. The cash register was on the right of the entrance between the sweet breads and the shelf of the aluminum stand, pot, microwave, etc. When I was facing the cash register, on the right, were small colorful cakes and some jello; while another glass like container had some chicharrones [pork skins]. Directly behind the cakes, was a picture of a turkey in front of a mountain with the sun behind it. Below the picture was the words El Pavo Bakeries. Above the counter that had the candy there were scattered, disorganized items that hung on the wall: a calendar, three pictures of optical illusions, posters of 2-3 layered cakes for special occasions.  Behind me was a coffee machine and next to the coffee were the sweet, sugary, breads. Above the bread containers there were pictures of colorful birthday cakes. The bakery is significant because it is located on a major location in Glendale where the Latino/Hispanic community lives and makes it easily accessible to visit and savor traditional, unique, tasteful desserts. The Latino community maintains traditional food sacred because besides the taste, it reminds members of the community of their homeland.
El Pavo Bakeries sells products that are recognizable to the Latino community like tamales. hot chocolate (champurrado), chicharrones, sweet breads [pan dulce] etc. that symbolizes the cultural significance for their homeland. The bakery offers these products to connect with the Latino community and “offer” cultural background appreciation. The sweet, sugary, bread contributes to the warm smell and the uniqueness taste that is a trademark within the Latino community. However, people are losing the meaningful of cultural value roots because they do not appreciate the bakery and its message to preserve the community’s origins. The food sold is homage of cultural traditions that should not disappear, as well as culture. Sometimes people are accustomed to their homes meals, but unaware that within the bakery holds a piece of their hometown too. However, the sweet, sugary bread remains a strong representation of the historical background of the Latino community which enforces to appreciate and remind the people where they came from. Another importance to the Latino community is the art and vibrant colors that connects with individual Latino heritage and hometown.
 Despite the fact that the food resembles the cultural heritage, the actual place lacks any connection to the culture. The bakery’s lacks of cultural structure makes the Hispanic community around it ignore the bakery. The architecture is not influenced by the kinds of products sold in the bakery. The bakery is unnoticed because the architecture is barely decorated except for the basic posters of cakes and such. An example of the lack of cultural reference to attract the Latino community is the logo which is not visible until people search for it; a turkey in front of the mountain with a sun including the name of the bakery. The architecture is absent from the bakery and the food because the Latino community identifies with colors like displayed on the piñatas. Art is vital because it resembles people’s heritage, history, and adventures including unfortunate events. The bakery does not provide a colorful meaning for the Latino community besides the food. The bakery is designated for the Latino community, but an official design within the place is needed to relate and Latino consumers to their food and remind them that their culture is where home is.

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