Newy’s 205,000 calorie chocolate sculpture

Suspended in the air with a two-metre wingspan, this Australian Sea Eagle sculpture had audiences’ tummies rumbling. Made entirely of Tanzanian Dark Chocolate, the 48-kilogram marvel is the first of its kind to be fully ‘air-borne’. It comes as a part of the Chocol’art Exhibition at the Creator Incubator, made by the Skills Collider team. Led by world-renowned chocolatier Dean Gibson, the exhibit featured the giant sea eagle, along with seven suspended chocolate seagulls, which audiences had the chance to move with an interactive spinning wheel.

The team uses entirely recycled ‘expired’ chocolate unfit for retail use, donated by a company in Sydney. The unique fusion of chocolate mastery and artistic vision comes as an annual exhibition from the Skills Collider team, creating Boneshaker, the world’s first moving chocolate sculpture in 2017, and more recently the Iron Shark, a 200kg sculpture with 21 entirely edible moving parts. But the exhibit represents a mission beyond culinary artistry.

“We’re excited to share this once-in-a-lifetime experience in our hometown Newcastle,” said Skills Collider co-creator Shane Williams.

“The Chocol’art Exhibition not only demonstrates the highest level of skills in chocolate artistry and design, it was also created to inspire and create opportunities for the next generation of culinary professionals.” The team’s mission is to “inspire industry talent, facilitate knowledge sharing, and elevate public appreciation of the creativity behind the art of baking and patisserie trades”.

Chocolate master Dean Gibson said the exhibit blends culinary expertise and artistic vision.

“We’ve pushed the boundaries of what’s possible with chocolate, creating an immersive experience that will captivate visitors,” Dean said.

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Story by Olivia Goeldner