Laura Nalin loves They Draw and Cook

By Venus Zine Staff
Published: October 15th, 2010 | 12:00am

This daily blog is so rad I can’t even handle it. I love art and I love to cook, so I am more than happy I found something that that intersects the two.

TheyDrawandCook.com, launched earlier this year, is the brainchild of sibling illustrators Nate Padavick and Salli Swindell, who, after indulging in a fig pasta dish on vacation discovered it is just as enjoyable to draw food as it is to prepare a meal. The dish inspired Swindell so much that she picked up a paintbrush and began to paint figs. The two realized that she was so enthusiastic about painting food that they discussed creating a book doubling as a showcase for distinctive illustrated interpretations of artists favorite recipes.

So, with the help of their friends, they gathered a ton of artwork and began their journey. However, while waiting on one unnamed friend, (who, according to their site, still has yet to submit an illustration) Padavick and Swindell decided they would put what they’d collected online, which to their surprise, generated more artwork and worldwide attention for They Draw and Cook.

The site is a foodie-artists canvas feauturing a a variety of mediums—everything from drawings in pencil, crayon, and chalk to watercolors, collages, and computer art. Thanks to the imaginative, storytelling illustrations, almost anyone can be a chef just by simply looking at the pictures. In fact, I once made a red pepper soup that was written in Polish (I don’t speak or read Polish) just using the images alone thanks to the wonderful artist Emilia Szewczyk.

I am quite excited to make some season-appropriate recipes featured such as carrot soup, pumpkin gnocchi, and butternut squash ravioli in the upcoming months.

After pulling together a number of original recipes, the duo will finally reach their original goal. Padavick and Swindell are teaming up with Weldon Owen Publishing and gathering 100 full-color illustrated recipes to create They Draw and Cook’s first book, due out in spring 2011.

Interested in submitting your art/recipe? Click here.

Laura Nalin is a Venus Zine editorial intern.

Comments

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Nate Padavick (about 1 year)
Laura - thanks for the awesome shout-out! You guys are awesome. Speaking of season-appropriate...starting today we're posting a batch of 9 PUMPKIN recipes over the next 3 days. YAY for pumpkins!

salli (about 1 year)
rad??? you called our blog rad? i'm so excited i can't stand it!!! thanks so much...cool site you have here.