Nuraqilah Fatin Swat recently came in 13 out of twenty talented latte artists, overcoming challenges with properly steaming the milk for the edible masterpieces and her own nerves. She also competed in spite of an intellectual disability, making her achievement even more inspiring. Although Fatin was disappointed in herself for not placing higher, she admitted that she was proud of herself for making it to the competition in the first place, which featured some of the most popular latte artists around.
Fatin has always been artistically minded, painting projects and making 3-D sculpture art from model clay. But it wasn’t until a teacher in her school showed her class a video on latte art that she became interested in the modern genre. Fatin immersed herself into the craft, studying tips and techniques online and getting the chance to practice her art multiple times a day through an internship at McDonald’s. There, she gained experience making designs with chocolate syrup and a thermometer, extending her time at the fast food restaurant for a year after her initial internship.
It was the same teacher who showed her the latte art who helped her to get a job at another cafe that focused completely on coffee. It was there that she learned more intricate latte designs from professional trainers, practicing and practicing until she was ready to compete at the latte art contest. A special grant also funded her training through the purchase of special equipment and contest entry fees. Part of the challenges of the competition included adhering to a timed deadline for all foam creations, as well as giving a speech about her latte art to competition judges.
Even after the latte art competition, Fatin has no plans to slow her passion for the practice. She derives inspiration from a world-renowned latte artist famous for his foam designs of tigers. Fatin says she hopes to travel around the world to learn more about coffee and latte art from different places and people. She also plans to compete again in the latte art contest next year, and hopes to gain additional skills in baking and pastry design in the interim.
Did you know that some art can be edible? Latte art is just one example of masterpieces you can eat. Others include desserts, pastries, even food plating and cooking. Learn more about art — which can be found even in the most mundane of places — by visiting SGArtClass.com. SGArtClass.com is an immersive website that offers everything from educational art articles covering all different types of creative genres to highly affordable art supplies on sale to help you complete your best projects. One of the biggest draws of SGArtClass.com is its extensive listing of art classes, including everything from 3-D sculpture to acrylic painting to fashion drawing to comic art.
To read more about Fatin’s latte art and future goals, go to https://www.todayonline.com/singapore/barista-intellectual-disability-puts-her-heart-latte-art.