The production of marshmallow on site attracts many tourists. (Photo provided by the interviewee)

A child is eating marshmallow with relish. (Photo provided by the interviewee)

A child is fixing the marshmallow on the shelf. (Photo provided by the interviewee)

CHONGQING (CQNEWS) -- During the Dragon Boat Festival holiday, Chongqing’s first non-heritage featured market, the Jiujie Yihuali, opened and welcomed 300,000 people to experience the “Chongqing” customs and non-heritage cuisine. In addition to the traditional cuisines, such as noodles, bean curd sheets, fermented glutinous rice from Fuling, marshmallows (a kind dessert that everyone is familiar with), are presented to the public. Interestingly, Gilles Stassart, a well-known French artist and 100 tourists have jointly created Chongqing's first marshmallow forest.

Gilles is a curator, artist, chef, writer, etc. He is good at exploring the world of art with food. He once ran the Tokyo Palace Nomiya restaurant next to the Eiffel Tower in Paris and made use of food to explore the relationship between people. It is he who turned it into a wonderful restaurant in Paris. This time, Gilles, together with 100 children and parents, played a "Marshmallow Art Summer Rhapsody."

At 11 a.m. that day, Gilles, by adopting the form of art workshops, led everyone to create a "marshmallow forest" with five super marshmallow makers in the outdoor space ---they placed countless hangers filled with marshmallows in the center of Yihuali Market. These marshmallows vary in size, style, and colors, and they look like a colorful marshmallow forest from afar. And this French artist was deeply impressed by the hands-on capabilities and creativity of Chongqing people.

In this activity, Gilles, through playing with food, has fully expanded the public’s understanding of food and art, and inspired people’s creativity. It is not only an exchange of Eastern and Western cultures, but also a “food game” that uses art to explore the relationships between people. (Translated by Liu Shumiao, Fathom Language Limited)