Javi Vergara of Mugaritz listens to the food, Fool magazine, Photo copyright Per-Anders Jorgensen

New gastronomy mag Fool looks rather tasty

Photographer launches high end magazine featuring Mugaritz, Noma and Fäviken - Phaidon approves!

We just got off the phone with Per-Anders Jorgensen, the photographer responsible for the wonderful photographs in our Mugaritz book. You may remember P-A telling us recently how he met his wife Lotta (the former creative director on a luxury food magazine) on his first ever food photography assignment. Well they've made a magazine together, called Fool, and the first issue is out next week.

In the blurb, Per-Anders describes it as a cutting edge magazine on modern gastronomy and food culture, taking inspiration from the worlds of fashion, design and culture. As he was driving through the golden fields of southern Sweden (think Kenneth Branagh in the first Wallander series) this morning he told us a bit more about it.

Fool magazine front cover

Fool magazine front cover

"It's quite an old idea - we actually registered the name about eight years ago. It's a play on Food and foolishness - because the very best chefs are often the most playful. It takes in all our own ideas really of what contemporary gastronomy is about. The one thing is that there are no recipes - after all you wouldn't buy Vogue and expect to find a sewing pattern, so why would people who are interested in gastronomy necessarily be interested in trying to cook something they could never master?"

Obviously though, everyone can enjoy a good picture and given the fact that Per-Anders is quite good at this, it doesn't disappoint in that department - not least the striking cover image of Magnus Nilsson of Fäviken dressed in fur coat and an Iron Maiden tee shirt.

Fool

Faviken: The incredible ducks, Photography copyright Per-Anders Jorgensen

"Magnus hates having his portrait taken and it was a very hot day, but I tell you, every women I know loves that picture," said P-A.

Inside, the magazine devotes a healthy 30 pages to the restaurant and its suppliers, (including some very special ducks), a great feature on Mugaritz (the restaurant in which Per-Anders and Lotta married) and four artists' visual interpretation of 11 natural winemakers.

Fool

Natural Winemakers illustration by Ilaria Lazzaroni

'It's funny, it's kind of like our baby,' Per-Anders said. 'We were pregnant for eight years and now it's time to deliver!' He's already thinking about a brother/ sister and is off to shoot in China for issue 2 next week.

You can buy Fool here and look through our gallery of Per-Anders' amazing photographs. And if, by some chance, you haven't bought the very wonderful Mugaritz yet, we have signed editions here.