Delectable ‘Wedding Cake’ Pavilion Is A Sweet Feast For The Eyes
Artist’s Impression of Wedding Cake © Atelier Joana Vasconcelos. Image via Waddesdon
If you have plans to visit Waddesdon village in England soon, be sure to take a nibble of its new icing on the cake: an architectural interpretation of a literal wedding cake.
Baked up by Portuguese artist Joana Vasconcelos, Wedding Cake at Waddesdon Manor is a new sculptural pavilion resembling a three-tiered wedding cake. This 12-meter-high (39-foot-high) marvel is entirely clad in ceramic tiles, mimicking the matte look of buttercream and marzipan.
Chris Lacey for © A Rothschild House and Garden. Image via Waddesdon
Commissioned by the Rothschild Foundation for Waddesdon, this work involving two international teams took almost five years to complete. Wedding Cake is a fusion of sculpture and architectural folly, an intricate blend of pâtisserie and architecture that also echoes the exuberant Baroque buildings in Lisbon, where Vasconcelos lives and works.
Chris Lacey for © A Rothschild House and Garden. Image via Waddesdon
The delightful pastel sculpture shines with icing-like gleam, adorned in delicate shades of pale pinks, greens, and blues, and enlivened with sculptural ornaments of mermaids, dolphins, and candles. A multi-sensory display, it features trickling water sounds and a bespoke lighting scheme. Vasconcelos describes it as “a temple to love,” and a celebration of festivity, marriage, and joy.
Other ingredients in this delectable recipe include 3,500 wrought iron parts, 21,815 kilograms (48,000 pounds) of iron sheet, and more than 26,000 Viúva Lamego ceramic tiles.
Artist’s Impression of Wedding Cake © Atelier Joana Vasconcelos. Image via Waddesdon
The artwork stands in a grove of trees near Waddesdon Manor’s 19th-century Dairy, paying tribute to the great Rothschild traditions of hospitality.
Chris Lacey for © A Rothschild House and Garden. Image via Waddesdon
Lionel Balteiro for © Atelier Joana Vasconcelos. Image via Waddesdon
The flavorful new addition, a permanent fixture, is meant to complement Waddesdon’s ceramics-rich history. The house is renowned for its exquisite Sèvres and Meissen porcelain, and the artwork’s sumptuous decoration harmonizes with the ornamented architecture of the house and its picturesque garden and landscape.
Lionel Balteiro for © Atelier Joana Vasconcelos. Image via Waddesdon
Lionel Balteiro for © Atelier Joana Vasconcelos. Image via Waddesdon
Lionel Balteiro for © Atelier Joana Vasconcelos. Image via Waddesdon
Chris Lacey for © A Rothschild House and Garden. Image via Waddesdon
This article was crafted with assistance from an AI engine, and has been manually reviewed & edited.
