Chocolate and technology collide

Imagine an exhibition of original sculptures designed by 10 of South Africa’s hottest creative talent? Only, these are no ordinary sculptures: they are made entirely out of chocolate 3D-printed chocolate. This is Chocnology brought to you by Nestl√© South Africa.

Nestl√© has always been about Good Food, Good Life. To celebrate this philosophy in South Africa, along with the announcement of Android KitKat, Nestl√© wanted to give the country ‚’a break’ with an original idea. ‚”The coming together of two very different worlds chocolate and technology inspired the idea of creating chocolate artwork made possible through the use of innovative technology,‚” says Kevin Corlett, Business Executive Manager, Chocolates at Nestl√©.

In essence, Chocnology ­is an exhibition of 3D-printed chocolate sculptures created by talented South African artists, using Android KitKat as inspiration.

Although the project culminates in a real-world exhibition, the entire process and the story behind Chocnology began with digital consideration. All designs were created using the Androidoperating system and freely available online 3D modelling tools. To produce the artwork, a 3D printer that traditionally uses a plastic-based filament was manipulated to use chocolate as its raw material, allowing the creation of intricate, three-dimensional sculptures. The entire process is being seeded online through Kit Kat SA on Facebook and Twitter.

The Chocnologist designers were constrained by nothing but their imagination. Tech analyst Liron Segev, Dale Halvorsen’s illustration alter-ego, Joey Hi-Fi, Studio Muti’s Mine Jonker, and talents from Am I Collective, and Orijin were among those putting their creative minds towards the 3D-printed artwork challenge. ‚”Nestl√© wanted to showcase pure South African talent. So we looked at a variety of local creative individuals from varying backgrounds. Illustrators, 3D artists, architects, book cover designers and chocolate technicians made up the final artist line-up,‚” says Ryan McManus, Executive Creative Director of NATIVE VML

‚”Printing in chocolate was extremely challenging and there were numerous constraints in terms of complexity, size, weight and shape. The model’s designs had to be printed into bite-size pieces and constructed by hand. It was imperative to remain true to the original vision of the artists and create visually rich and beautiful pieces without letting the constraints hinder the end results.‚”

These incredible chocolate artworks will be seen for the first time at the Museum Of African Design (MOAD) in Johannesburg’s Maboneng Precinct on Thursday 7 November 2013. The work will be celebrated by the coming together of Nestl√© and Google guests, members of the press, the mobile and technology community and the Kit Kat South Africa community.

After the exclusive opening, Chocnology will remain open to the public until Sunday, 10 November 2013. Fans can follow the gallery opening and tweet their own experiences at @KitKatSA using #Chocnology.

The concept of 3D printing is not a new one but the fact that Nestl√© has created South Africa’s first exhibition of 3D printed chocolate art is very unique. ‚”Nestl√©’s Kit Kat brand has always been brave and innovative in its approach to both its product and its communication. The Google partnership is testament to that and the exhibition of the 3D- printed chocolate sculptures is the perfect way to celebrate that,‚” concludes McManus.

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