In conjunction with Jelly Belly's new line of Harry Potter treats, Cumings has spent part of this year planning and executing pictures of the characters from the beloved films. She had already completed Dumbledore and Ron Weasley and spent the 4 days of New York Comic Con working on Harry himself. When I spoke to her on Thursday (the first day of the convention) Cumings was just beginning the arduous task of painstakingly placing black and grey jelly beans on her "canvas". These varying colors/flavors would eventually become the shadings and fold of Harry's iconic robe.
Cumings starts with a drawing that she covers in an adhesive. She then spends about one hundred hours placing the jellybeans on the drawing and when it is all finished she pours a resin over the entire picture to cement the jellybeans in place and preserve the candy. Jelly Belly then showcases these works of art at events around the country and at their headquarters in Fairfield, CA.
Cumings is certainly unique in her use of alternative media to create these portraits but the results are no less stunning that if she had put oil to canvas. She is passionate about the work, which comes through as you speak to her and her affection for the company and the candy itself is clear and evident. If you have the opportunity to watch her work or to see her masterpieces you definitely should. I'm sure you will be impressed.
