joão loureiro serves grayscale gelato at tadao ando’s Mpavilion 10

joão loureiro teams up with piccolina for grayscale gelato

Brazilian artist João Loureiro creates edible art by churning six nameless grayscale gelato and serving it at Tadao Ando-designed MPavilion 10 at Queen Victoria Gardens in Melbourne, Australia. Titled Escala de Cinzas (Greyscale), the artist collaborates with the local gelateria Piccolina to serve these six shades of grey gelato, whose palette and design ties in with the concrete pavilion of the Japanese architect. The gelateria continues to serve Escala de Cinzas (Greyscale) every weekend until January 5th, 2025, from 11am until 4pm, and the project is presented with the support of Pinacoteca de São Paulo.

On-site, customers can ask Piccolina about the flavors of the grayscale gelato, which range from light grey to almost black. João Loureiro tells designboom in an email that the flavors change every time the work is shown. ‘It depends on local flavors and the ice cream production system,’ he shares with us. Users across social platforms still try to guess the flavors, including black sesame, but only when they visit the stall at MPavilion 10 can they confirm their hunches. In a way, revealing the flavors online defeats the purpose of keeping the grayscale gelato a mystery.

all images courtesy of Piccolina, unless stated otherwise

Design inspiration of edible art comes from ashes

Some users have expressed their concerns about their allergy reactions, but Piccolina staff serving João Loureiro’s grayscale gelato may be equipped to inform their on-site about what’s in the edible art. In terms of artistic approach, it’s not the first time that the Brazilian artist has created grayscale-colored food. In 2011, he crafted a wooden popsicle painted in gray stripes and collaborated with the local ice cream shop, Jauja. It’s similar to a rainbow-colored ombre, only rendered in black and white, from the darkest to the lightest shade.

João Loureiro draws the idea for Escala de Cinzas (Greyscale) gelato during his participation in a show in San Carlos de Bariloche, Argentina, in 2012. As he shares with MPavilion 10 in an interview, the city tourism faced challenges after the volcanic eruption in nearby Chile, covering it in ashes. This color and its shades have now appeared at Piccolina’s stall inside the Tadao Ando-designed MPavilion 10 at Queen Victoria Gardens. João Loureiro hopes that the visitors continue to approach his grayscale gelato in a playful, inquisitive way as they indulge the unknown.

João Loureiro churns six nameless grayscale gelato and serves it at Tadao Ando-designed MPavilion 10