NZ cake artists work on display in Tauranga

Tauranga Cake Decorating Guild member Beryl Madsen Ries with some of the cakes set to feature in the NZ Cake Decorating and Sugar Art Exhibition. Photo/Andrew Warner..

More than 250 cake decorators from around New Zealand will descend on Tauranga next weekend to showcase their artistic talents using a wide variety of techniques and styles.

The NZ Cake Decorating and Sugar Art Exhibition which was being held at ASB Arena from November 5 and 6 was a great chance for the general public to see first hand about the creative art.

The exhibition coincided with the NZ Cake Decorating Guild's 30th Anniversary Conference which was being hosted by the Tauranga Cake Decorators Guild.

The theme of this year's anniversary conference and exhibition was "Summer at the Beach'.

Tauranga Cake Decorators Guild founding member Beryl Madsen Ries said the exhibition and conference would bring together about 278 guild members from as far north as Whangarei and as far south as Dunedin.

That included 35 local guild members.

Plus she said the conference always attracted one or two international guild members and this year Georgie Godbold from the UK and Helen Dissell from Australia would attend.

The participants in the exhibition also competed for honours across several themed categories in open and novice classes.

That included sugar and cold porcelain, to sugar flower spray and formal cake and 'anything goes' sculptured novelty cake with a summer retro theme.

Ms Madsen Ries, who was also on the judging panel, said the art of cake decorating had grown in leaps in bounds since she first helped found the Tauranga Cake Decorators Guild 22 years ago.

"I think here in Tauranga we are really blessed with a great depth of people skilled in this art. Plus we now have far better constituted pastes to work with and professional tools to shape and manipulate icings, and so much better edible colourings, beads and glitters."

"People are truly only limited by their imagination," she said.

Ms Madsen Ries said the exhibition was a great opportunity for the general public to see what the popular art was all about and talk to guild members about how they too can become involved.

"The exhibition is always a mind-blowing display of creativity, and amazingly talented people, "she said

Ms Madsen Ries said the exhibition and conference was also an opportunity for the guild to broaden its talent base, as well as attract new members.

The entry fee is $3 for anyone aged 12 and over.