The Mediterranean Diet

by Arjen Roos

Over the last few months, I’ve become much more mindful about what I eat, and a Mediterranean diet now forms the basis of my daily meals. Lots of fresh vegetables, fruit and other colourful ingredients. Beforehand, I mainly associated a diet with things I was no longer allowed to eat, smaller portions and, above all, a great deal of discipline. In practice, it turned out to work surprisingly differently for me.

My Mediterranean diet consists largely of fruit and vegetables, supplemented with wholemeal products, brown rice, potatoes, olive oil, Greek yoghurt, nuts, fish and chicken. They’re actually very ordinary ingredients, but together they provide a huge variety of colours, flavours and textures. Vegetables have become an increasingly important part of my meals. Not only am I eating more healthily, but I’ve also noticed that this way of eating gives me lots of energy and simply makes me feel good.

I wanted to translate that into a work of art. Not by creating a traditional still life with fruit and vegetables, but by giving the ingredients a completely new function. A slice of orange becomes the sun, cabbage leaves turn into rolling hills, and leaves, stalks, roots and other vegetables together form the vegetation and various layers of a colourful landscape. Up close, they remain recognisable as fruit and vegetables; from a distance, an almost abstract landscape emerges. For me, the Mediterranean character fits perfectly with this. It evokes the same sunny world with which I associate this way of eating: warmth, colour, fresh ingredients and the enjoyment of food.

This work is therefore also a small celebration of an unexpected discovery. For me, a diet doesn’t have to mean that everything revolves around ‘less’. On the contrary, it can mean ‘more’: more colour, more flavour, more energy and, ultimately, more enjoyment.