Those who appreciate artisan cheese made in the U.S. know that cheesemaking is an art, but one woman adds a whole new dimension to that art. Cheese carver Sarah Kaufmann, The Cheese Lady, promotes cheese by creating carvings at events held around the country in grocery stores, at state fairs and food shows. Much like decorative ice sculptures, her artwork features cheese as the material. Instead of melting, though, work created by the nationally known cheese sculptor is most often cut, wrapped and eaten after her carving is done. “About 90 percent of my carvings get eaten,” she estimates.
Sarah Kaufmann earned a Guinness World Record for creating the world’s largest cheese carving, a 925-pound cheese roller coaster that she carved at the 2011 Wisconsin State Fair. The Cheese Lady is a Wisconsin native, as serious about the art of cheesemaking as she is about her work as a cheese carver. A former creative director at the Wisconsin Milk Marketing Board with a degree in commercial art, she is now a freelance artist spreading the word about quality American cheesemaking. Yes, she wears a Cheesehead hat while she’s carving cheese with her ceramic wire tools. And yes, she has created hundreds of whimsical carvings, such as a 6-foot-long alligator and a 300-pound gorilla. Ultimately, though, as she works on her carvings she reaches beyond whimsy to educate and inform her audience about cheese. In addition to being able to taste the cheese she talks about, audience members gain an appreciation for the artisans who have preserved American cheesemaking traditions and the resulting quality cheeses.
Her upcoming cheese-carving events include demonstrations at the International Dairy-Deli-Bakery Association (IDDBA) Show in New Orleans, June 10-12, 2012. There, Sarah Kaufmann, The Cheese Lady, will be spotlighting Wisconsin cheeses by creating cheese carvings in the Henning’s Wisconsin Cheese and Wisconsin Milk Marketing Board booths. Before the show kicks off, she also will be carving at two Rouses Market locations in New Orleans, on June 8 and 9.
By combining her experience with her enthusiasm for American-produced cheeses, Sarah Kaufmann has truly carved out a niche for herself. Her next goal, she says, is to attend the world’s largest food and beverage fair, Anuga, in Germany. “I want to do a gigantic sculpture that incorporates the cheeses of America.”
For more information about Sarah Kaufmann, The Cheese Lady, visit her website at www.sarahcheeselady.com.
Source: Sarah Kaufmann, The Cheese Lady
