Gastro

LoFi-Food: the anti-aesthetic trend that revolves around food

Gastronomy on social networks is now part of the anti-aesthetic "laissez-faire" trend based on DIY, realism and minimal presentation.

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The over-stimulation of online beauty seems to be diluted to give way to this revolutionary act that follows the feisty movement in food. Thus, we can now see how all the profiles (more diversified) that channel the universe of gastronomy through the blue light are giving a twist to that absolute aestheticism that harmoniously structured the feeds.

The Lo-Fi Food trend then stands as the new virtual craze that emphasizes a realistic and even grotesque approach to editing, showing bizarre and ugly photographs taken in messy kitchens or tables.

Chaos and reality are portrayed in these photos that subvert all that staging around food, as well as the angles or approaches meditated through photo-dumping, and that anarchic spirit that revolutionizes the universe of plating and food styling. What prevails now is the food itself and its taste, as a concept synchronized with the latent longing for home-cooked meals, as well as the desire to reflect transparency on the Internet.

From bloggers and/or foodies to food lovers, they are moving away from those crisp, perfectly lit plates with meticulously placed garnishes to join this more down-to-earth trend that has been, above all, fueled by the new generations who value authenticity.

UNFILTERED FOOD

The (unfiltered) food images we can now see in those photo carousels (or dumps), in which different realities of food creators coexist, now reflect a kind of authenticity, and even “ugliness”, that puts the focus on real food that we can empathize with. Thus, the posts that work well today are those that become visual and raw, rather than curated, diaries. A new expression or current that could evoke profiles of creators like @eatnunchi, @cuhnja, @suea, @tenderherbs or @yungkombucha420.

Of course, leaning towards ugliness -or at least less obvious decoration- is still an aesthetic choice intended to signify irreverence. Still, the Lo-Fi Food trend projects a kind of redemption or liberation to all the aesthetic slavery and staging of food in which we were deeply immersed.