oatmeal bentonite cookies

making more clay cookies today.

I'm giving up on straight soil/clay. Previous experiments with mud and straight clay have taught me that cooking without any binding agents, starches, or flours is very difficult! I would like to present cookies that are actually edible, if not during the entire installation, at least at the opening. I think these oatmeal-based clay cookies are the best option.

During the installation, I think I'll make large salt dough cakes that will sit out on the floor as well as be stacked on the shelves. I know this is "cheating," but needs must--I can't have perishable food sitting out in a hot plastic box for a month! I'm also trying to figure out how to "fake" my liquid food. Right now glue, hair conditioner, and paint seem like likely contenders. I'm learning a lot from Bob Flanagan's process of designing his Visible Man. He talks about his materials a lot, what worked, what didn't, and I'm involved in a very similar process, making fluids from inside the body capable of existing outside the body without rotting or hardening up. Although, in my case, hardening would probably be OK if it didn't also mean discoloration.