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Artist Klaus Pichler Showcases Rotting Food In Still Life Series (PHOTOS)

The Huffington Post  |  By Posted: 04/ 3/2012 12:19 pm Updated: 04/ 5/2012 10:39 am

A fair warning, Austrian artist Klaus Pichler's photographic still life series of rotting food isn't for the faint of heart.

The project, titled "One Third," takes its name from the 1.3 billion tons of food -- roughly a third of the total world supply -- that regularly goes to waste according to a 2011 study by the United Nations. At the same time, 925 million people worldwide live with the threat of starvation.

The images, beautifully composed but often stomach turning, are accompanied by statistics regarding the food's origin, time of harvest, means of transportation, distance traveled and its carbon footprint.

In a statement accompanying the work, Pichler writes about the disparity in food waste between industrialized and non-industrialized nations.

Unsurprisingly, the worldwide percentage of food waste per person varies greatly: In Europe and North America, each consumer wastes between 95 and 115 kilograms of food, whilst only between six and 11 kilograms of edible goods are discarded per person in Sub Saharan Africa and South/South East Asia.

Check out more of Pichler's "One Third" series on his website, and his other work through the Anzenberger Gallery in Vienna, Austria.

Click through the below gallery to check out Pichler's work -- and what foods look like long after their expiration dates.

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Sort: Pineapple 'Nana'
Place of production: Guayaquil, Ecuador
Transport distance: 10.666 km
Mode of Transport: Aircraft, Freight vehicle
Cultivation: Outdoor plantation
Harvest time: all- season
Carbon footprint (production & transport) per kg: 11,94 kg
Water requirement (production & transport) per kg: 360 l
price: 2,10 € / 1 kg
FOLLOW FOOD

A fair warning, Austrian artist Klaus Pichler's photographic still life series of rotting food isn't for the faint of heart. The project, titled "One Third," takes its name from the 1.3 billion to...
A fair warning, Austrian artist Klaus Pichler's photographic still life series of rotting food isn't for the faint of heart. The project, titled "One Third," takes its name from the 1.3 billion to...
 
 
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06:28 PM on 04/05/2012
I LOVE IT
05:56 PM on 04/05/2012
Gross, but oddly interesting.
04:57 PM on 04/05/2012
Wow i didnt know maggots and flys could be so pretty! lol
08:31 PM on 04/05/2012
I don't know about maggots, but flies can be very pretty from the jewel-like blow flies to the stunning eyes of the black soldier fly http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3011/2836305917_d1341b0763_o.jpg
10:25 PM on 04/04/2012
YUCK! Who in their right mind would think that this rotting food is beautiful? DECAY! STENCH! BACTERIA! YUCK!
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stepintothelight
Quis custodiet ipsos custodes?
07:30 PM on 04/04/2012
You think this is impressive? You should see the collage art I create with one finger down my throat. I'm going through my binge/purge period.

What? Too soon???
06:26 PM on 04/05/2012
oh no i hope you get help. it will rot your teeth and the acids will burn your throat off!!
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stepintothelight
Quis custodiet ipsos custodes?
06:36 PM on 04/05/2012
We must sacrifice for our Art!!!
09:41 AM on 04/04/2012
What's next? Pictures of stuff in toilets called "used dinner"
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Matheus Segura
lawier, works in a public bank in Brazil
09:18 AM on 04/04/2012
the cookies do not look good at all... the ice cream, though... i could have it this way rs
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PlutocratsSuck
Godless heathen liberal...and loving it.
06:41 AM on 04/04/2012
I could have done without seeing the maggots. *urp*
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HUFFPOST SUPER USER
Cydsterie
03:22 AM on 04/04/2012
Lovely.
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MagicalPossibilities
Question everything...
12:17 AM on 04/04/2012
You mean the stuff in the back of my refrigerator is art?
06:27 PM on 04/05/2012
LMAO
This user has chosen to opt out of the Badges program
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12:07 AM on 04/04/2012
Gag inducing, but the ice cream and watermelon one where kind of cool.
11:37 PM on 04/03/2012
Booooooooooo
Might as well do a series rotting diapers
10:29 PM on 04/04/2012
Yea, or wonderful creations left in diapers by baby artists.
08:37 AM on 04/05/2012
Ummmmmmmmmmmmmmm
11:02 PM on 04/03/2012
But Zergut the film takes it to the next level! http://zergutfilm.com/
@foodfilmfest @CHAYKASOFIA @foodfilmamerica
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HUFFPOST SUPER USER
Ashley Lesniak
10:37 PM on 04/03/2012
YUCK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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HUFFPOST SUPER USER
SidelineBoy
09:19 PM on 04/03/2012
Proof that art can not be found everywhere. And if this is art, then art doesn't mean much.
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HUFFPOST SUPER USER
jimboy71
Hen Diapheron Heautoi
04:58 PM on 04/05/2012
Why? It is strikingly beautiful, part of a long artistic tradition, and it causes the viewer to think...what more would you want?
06:28 PM on 04/05/2012
Huh? Who the hell would think to capture rotting food. The beauty of it is two things: one to raise awareness of how a much wasteful society we are and two..turning something most people find replusive into something WONDERFUL. might as well put THE WASTED FOOD into good use. hehee