Award-Winning Artist Turns Avocados Into Intricately Carved Masterpieces

Avocados are great for your heart, brain, skin, hair, and gut, but Italian artist Daniele Barresi has found another use for the popular fruit. He uses the green flesh as his canvas to create incredibly intricate avocado carvings. His food sculptures are so impressive that they’ve even earned him awards. He’s the two-time world champion carving designer of WACS championship (both 2013 and 2014) and in 2015, he was invited back to be one of the judges of the contest.

It’s easy to see why Barresi has been so successful in his chosen art form. His avocado carvings are not only visually stunning, but they clearly demonstrate his expert skill. Each design can take hours to complete, but Barresi enjoys every moment. He tells My Modern Met, “As we say in Italy, if you love what you are doing, it doesn’t matter how long it is going to take, because you will enjoy the whole time you are doing it.”

From nature-inspired patterns to sculpted birds and other creatures, Barresi turns avocados into amazing works of art. And while he’s famous for his avocado sculptures, he also carves from other fruits, vegetables, soap, and even resin. “I really love to carve, especially watermelons, because they remind me of my birth country,” he reveals. “Because of their colors—green, red and white—and also because of their size. I can choose any design, even if it would take a while.”

Fruit carving allows Barresi to combine his love of food with his passion for art. “Carving is a peace of mind for me,” he shares. “I have always loved anything related to arts, and kitchen, so carving gave me the possibility to match both of them.”

Check out Barresi’s latest avocado carvings below and follow him on Instagram to see his works crafted from other objects.