All I can say is, "Phew! Where has the time gone this year?!" Somehow marking each month with new site art is like watching all of those hyper time-lapsed cookie videos that are so trendy right now - everything comes and goes with seemingly lightning speed! On the one hand, this situation is great - I love seeing all of our winning Practice Bakes Perfect Challenge #13 entries* finally revealed on the site. But, on the other hand, there's barely enough time to appreciate the last glorious entry before the next fantabulous one comes along!
However, as much as I wish every entry could linger on our site for all of eternity, the show must go on . . . and so I present to you that next fantabulous entry: a cheerful underwater scene by Magadiuz, aka Ina Uzzanu! (I just love her real name, don't you?!)
As always, we'll do an in-depth Cookier Close-up interview with Ina later in August, but 'til then, here's a brief bio to help you get acquainted with the creative force behind August's beautiful site art!
Ina Uzzanu (aka Magadiuz) started cookie decorating only very recently, back in September 2014 to be exact, when she saw some decorated cookies and was especially impressed by the cookier’s skill and artistry. While she thought cookie decorating might be mission impossible for her, her motto is “never say never”, so you can guess where she ended up!
At the beginning, cookie decorating was just a hobby for Ina, but it soon became a fever! Discovering Cookie Connection was the turning point! "I felt like a baby in a toy shop. I couldn’t believe there were such wonders. Since then, I’ve been learning so many new techniques and improving myself even more," reports Ina.
Because health laws are very strict in Sassari, Italy (Ina's hometown), she's not able to prepare cookies in her home, and she doesn't sell because she would need both a license and a shop. However, at the end of 2015, she established a cultural association to allow her to start selling classes. She's also been asked to exhibit her cookies at the MURATS craft museum in Sardinia.
On a more personal note, Ina was born on a Mediterranean island, but lived for many years in Florence. It was there that she acquired her love for art and her aesthetic sense. She credits her father, a painter, for turning her onto painting, which she often applies to her cookies. Ina is mother to a 26-year-old son, and also works as a translator and English teacher.
Photo credit: Magadiuz
* P.S. Our 2016 featured site artists are all winners of our Practice Bakes Perfect Challenge #13, which you can read more about here. If you would like your own cookie art to be considered for use on the site after our challenge winners have run their course (by January 2017), I would love to see it at any time. Guidelines for submitting cookie art can be found here.
