I first read about chef Yoshihiro Narisawa on a blog in 2012. Their was one post compiling a small review with pictures
of the Tokyo-based chefs restaurant. Yoshihiro’s blend of regional Japanese
ingredients coupled with the flair of French technique displayed in the images
on his website encouraged me to pursue my research on one of Japan's 'celebrity' chefs.
The last 20 years has seen the
notion of cuisine escalated to a cultural monolith. The rise of the celebrity chef has brought forth media coverage to the mainstream, it has inspired sub-cultural trends such as the 'foodies' and their constant circulation of Instagram snapshots, and brought us mobile apps to help us learn how to cook like Curtis Stone. Before new media and mobile technology, a chef of Narisawa's ilk would be unknown to someone like me in Australia. The coverage of the worldwide
food obsession through new media has only facilitated the spread of renown for a
new breed of chefs, restaurants and recipes.
The notion of ‘the specular economy’
revolves around the way in which we, and our subsequent audiences produce,
perceive and distribute various images and text through new media (Marshall, P.
D. 2010, p. 499). Through technological
advancements, we now have an audience with a ‘sophisticated appeal to
individualisation within coordinated cultural trends’ (2010, p. 499). In our case, this is the foodies.
Narisawa recently received the
2013 number one restaurant in Asia ranking. In his home country of Japan,
Narisawa is renowned for his environmentalist ways, so much so that his use of
regional ingredients is inherent in not only the food, but also the handmade
plates and serving platters used in presentation.
The two-way mirror projection of
the self, inherent in ‘the specular economy’ facilitates the spread of restaurant Narisawa
and Yoshihiro Narisawa's ethos on food. The ‘exchange and interchange of a networked culture’
(Marshall, P. D. 2010, p. 502) is something that new media has built,
progressively, with blogs, forums and social media becoming the playing grounds
for interests and inspiration - after all that is how I first learnt of Narisawa.
The technique and food of
Narisawa is held in high regard in the east. Now thanks to our globalised
societies, Yoshihiro is receiving renowned as one of Asia’s finest celebrity
chefs in the west as well.
Thank you for reading, till next time...
Reference List:
Marshall, P.D 2010, ‘The Specular
Economy’, Society, vol. 47, no. 6, pp. 498-502
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ReplyDeleteFirst off, I wish I had of found your blog sooner! This piece was delightful to read as it was well written and posed valid arguments. After reading your ‘about me’ section, your love for cooking/chefs were apparent. Great approach to the topic! I didn’t even think about celebrity chefs whilst approaching this topic. Your blog post was thoroughly researched, and although you have only incorporated one scholarly source, your inclusion of quotes and discussion of the specular economy was excellent. Your definition of the specular economy made the piece easy to read. Great work!
ReplyDeleteHello Michael,
ReplyDeleteCongratulations on yet another fantastic post, a good read which presented some valuable information about how you perceive celebrities within the world of cooking. Despite not a overwhelming selection of scholarly material your informal post seams to benefit without it as it becomes all too obvious to the reader that you are very proficient in this area of study. The images of the food make the mouth water and the Youtube clip was paramount to your piece as it reinforces that Yoshihiro Narisawa is indeed a celebrity chef. The use of the link to Yoshihiro was also of great appreciation. Keep up the strong work