Illustrating a Carton of Chicken Eggs

In this post I share photo steps in a video showing how I painted a box of chicken eggs.

This series of egg illustrations, painted in watercolor, were part of a commission for a story about eggs, published in the online magazine Life and Thyme  “Cracking the Code -An Exploration of the Incredible, Edible Egg” featuring the humble and ubiquitous egg. This article explores how eggs from different animals are used in diverse cuisines around the world.

• Chicken eggs account for 90 percent of the world’s egg production, according to the international Egg Commission
• Duck eggs are popular in eastern cultures including China, The Philippines, Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia. They are not as common in the cuisine of western countries.
• Ostrich eggs measure five inches long, six inches wide, can weigh up to three pounds, and have a shell that’s 4mm thick.
• Quail eggs are quite small, about the size of a quarter, but have more protein by percentage than a chicken egg.
• Fish eggs are used in Sushi (roe); and in the form of caviar (sturgeon) is a delicacy that was prized by the ancient Persians and Greeks.
• Turtle eggs are a delicacy and in such demand by the underground aphrodisiac market that many species are endangered.

I’m not that fond of eggs. When I was a child I was told to eat a soft-boiled egg for breakfast. The egg turned out to be bad–I told my grandmother it tasted funny–and I became violently ill.

Today I can’t stand the thought of eating an egg that isn’t completely cooked. I’ll eat eggs only when hard-boiled or scrambled and well-done. But I do love egg-custard or flan.

What about you? Do you like eggs, and how do you like them prepared?

And then there is fish. As an adult I developed a severe allergy to fish and sea food so I’ve never tasted caviar and I don’t think I ever will. And I used to really love fish, especially shrimp!

What about you? Have you ever had caviar? How would you describe the taste and sensation?