Pitted against several leading pastry chefs in the country, Team Daniel Keadle and Craig Chamberlain were named this year’s National Showpiece Champions, along with being awarded Best Chocolate Showpiece for their unparalleled skill.
Seven teams of two chefs competed over the course of eight hours, constructing showpieces utilizing a unique trio of pedestal bases. Combined with no theme, an entirely new range of showpiece design was encouraged among the teams. Team Keadle’s chocolate showpiece, titled “Quetzalcoatlus,” gained high marks for its visual appeal as well as its overall design. Approaching their piece with the desire to form a sculpture that was fun for the audience and judges, the team relied on their own creative abilities, steering clear from mimicking other designs. With this as their ultimate challenge, the team utilized the Stan Winston School of Character Arts as a starting point for driving their creativity.
Aiming to develop a character piece that possessed both presence and depth, the team settled upon several unique influences for their design. Chief among these was that of the mythical creature, the Phoenix, which they aesthetically combined with their shared love for Mayan and Aztec cultures. Many details of their finished piece clearly exhibited their theme’s goal through the various cast, carved and hand molded aspects of their sculpture.
Among the crowd though, Team Oscar Ortega and Alejandro Lechuga were crowned the ultimate favorite for their sugar showpiece titled “Natura,” earning the People’s Choice Award. Their showpiece design, inspired by Mother Nature and evolution, was also awarded Best Sugar Showpiece by the judges. Their piece featured a multitude of sugar flora and fauna, including a realistic blown sugar snail.
With their chocolate showpiece titled “Earth and Industry,” Team Joshua Cain and Sheldon Millett were chosen by their peers for the “Competitor’s Choice Award.” Derived from the idea of balancing life with striving industry, the team’s design consisted of steel chocolate beams and colorful flowers in full bloom. Best Showpiece Artistry, a new award for artistic excellence, went to Team Gonzalo Jimenez and David Lewis for their steampunk inspired chocolate machine, fully equipped with chocolate bolts and nuts.
While many pastry competitions call for competitors to endure extraordinary hardships, the National Showpiece Championship is designed to overcome such constraints and allows chefs the freedom to be both creative and innovative. Each team exhibited a high level of creative capability, demonstrating what minimal restrictions produce. Pastry Live wishes to congratulate Chefs Daniel Keadle and Craig Chamberlain for winning this year’s National Showpiece Championship. Pastry Live also thanks each competitor for their outstanding work, professionalism and for helping to make this yet another successful year.
For more details about Pastry Live and the National Showpiece Championship, please contact Event Producer Paul Bodrogi at chef@pastrylive.com or 678.881.9490. Further information is also available on our website at www.pastrylive.com.
Source: Pastry Live
