Alumni & Entrepreneur - The PinneappleChef

Dear alumnis, 

This week, we are glad to see you again for a brand new Alumni & Entrepreneur portrait, the one of Elise Dumas (IFM Management 2004), Visual Merchandiser Free Lance & Founder of  The Pineapple Chef.  

Hello Elise, 

It was a real pleasure to discover your world and your story as an entrepreneur!

Before our phone call,  I made another visit to your website . The atmosphere of your photos  is warm, tinged with a bit of mystery. One could sometimes find in the petals of a peony, the reflections of silk, the volume of a petticoat… I love this poetic feeling ... What is the kind of Fashion that inspires you the most and who is the designer you feel most indebted to? 

Without any hesitation, Mr. Alber Elbaz is my greatest reference. I arrived at Lanvin in January 2009. Mr. Alber Elbaz was the Artistic Director. So I had the great chance to work alongside him. I had just finished my contract at Vuitton and I found myself propelled into an "ultra couture" environment. It was quite different from what I had ever experimented before. Alber Elbaz's poetry, creative inspiration and fashion intelligence were present at every moment. We worked together not only on the display (shops, showrooms, openings) but also sometimes on the layout of the shops. 

The unbelievable surge of creativity that I was swept into at that time is still the line of force that I continue to rely on. At IFM I was trained with a global vision of fashion as well as with the very technical aspects of our businesses. When I arrived at Lanvin, these different theoretical skills came together like the pieces of my professional puzzle.

Do you have a "Fashion style" or " cherished" clothes? Your everyday style?

I would say the shirt, and its two unavoidable variants: the white shirt and the denim shirt. 

The white shirt sublimates all women, whatever their silhouette or skin tone. It can be worn in all circumstances: casual or tuxedo like Yves Saint Laurent. And the denim shirt makes a real chameleon ... I wear it with almost everything!

Thank you for these recommendations ... Our questions follow certain letters of the Alphabet that we have chosen for you.  

Question A - Let's start with the letter A... And so let's start with the beginning of your story. What happened? Where did The Pineapple Chef come from?

First, for the record, the name is a tribute to my childhood passion for pineapple as a child raised in Africa. At the time my project was born, in Paris, I was cooking under the art deco frieze with fruit and especially pineapples that decorates my apartment. And that's when The Pineapple Chef was born. 

About ten years ago, the diagnosis of numerous food intolerances changed my relationship with food. I had to move away from the fundamentals of French cuisine: wheat, eggs, cow's milk... During my many trips, notably to Africa, the United States and Holland, I discovered other cuisines that helped me review my recipe book. In parallel to my professional career as a Visual Merchandiser, I then shared them on my blog the pinneapplechef!

Very quickly, visually showcasing my recipes took up a lot of my time ... As a Visual Merchandiser, I’m always looking to sublimate a garment in a shop window or in a store . It was the same with The pinneapple chef , but with a more personal approach.

American blogs were impressively professional. I then followed workshops, but above all, I threw myself heart and soul into the intensive practice of photography by doing a lot - really a lot - of tests, exercises, experiments ....

Question B for Breaking point ... At some point, you made this decision to be an entrepreneur, how did the switch happen?

As far as I can remember, I could never have imagined being an entrepreneur. When I was younger, I didn't think I was capable of it. But after a 15-year career with various fashion houses, and especially after my last experience in VM, I asked myself what will happen next. Which other house should I go to, for which other artistic direction? Why not to develop my profession and work for several houses? 

And then my personal work for The pineaplechef motivated me to devote more time to it. The balance between my main activity and this passion became complicated to maintain. One thing leading to another, at the beginning of 2019 I launched my activity as an expert consultant in Visual Merchandising and I accelerated the content’s professionalization for The Pineapple Chef. 

Today, in the culinary field, I can start working at very early stage in the project for image consulting or, much further downstream, to take charge of a demanding brief and ensure the styling of a product's staging. It's a very virtuous circle of skills that enrich each other!

Question F as in Flower or Leaf. Nature is very present in your pictures: Is there a particular reason for this strong taste for plants?  

It's a parallel passion. I like to draw inspiration from the still lifes of the Dutch Golden Age (17^th century), those famous paintings of bouquets, meals or fruit baskets on a table. I am also very much influenced by Rembrandt's works, the peculiarity that he had of drawing our attention both to the centre of the composition, but also to the colors and his work of chiaroscuro, of course. 

Nature regenerates me. The plant finds its place in relation to the subject, to the object whose volumes, materials and colors it sublimates. Through the universe of gastronomy, culinary and vegetal, I allow almost any object to travel into new universes, to unlock the boundaries. 

My pleasure in the scenography of plants has brought me closer to florists. One of them has allowed me to acquire techniques that also nourish my creativity.

Our question I as Image  - It is also a question related to art. In your work, we notice that there is a relationship between on one hand instantaneity - like the little dishes you prepare - and on the other hand, photography that settles in the long term.  How do you approach this paradox between the ephemeral and the imperishable?

Precisely, I think I want to leave a trace of this perishable beauty, this ephemeral, fragile and vulnerable beauty that inexorably dies. One would want this peony, or this rose to remain intact and perfect, but it is precisely because one knows that it will wither, that one perceives its beauty.

And then we perceive this beauty until its last hours. Even scorched by the sun, its petals crumpled, its dress darkened, the rose retains an ineffable majesty.

What interests me is to capture that fragility. Once I've captured it, I won't spend any more time on it. This creative gesture is an invitation to everyone to take the time to stop for a moment to simply look, to make oneself available for everyday life until one feels seized by the beauty of things.

Question R as of Right Now ... We are currently hoping that the health crisis will lead to a gradual recovery of activities and potentially to new opportunities. How are you adapting today and how do you imagine the future?

For my part, I oscillate between moments of great confidence with clients who ask me to create content and, conversely, moments of doubt. These are strange times that generate a lot of uncertainty. Living the present moment to the fullest allows me to take advantage of this current "campaign bubble (where I'm confined)"! Thanks to social networks, I am weaving new links, discovering brands, participating in live events. I am starting to explore new visual options to deploy my activity in anticipation of the new expectations I perceive.

Let's go straight to Question N... It's the question of the Network. Do you network for your projects? That of the IFM Alumni?  What do these networks bring you? 

My professional network has grown very naturally during my 15-year career. I still work with some of my former houses. The IFM network is alive and within the Entrepreneurs Club I am starting to build new and rich working relationships. I am very active in the networks of photographers, bloggers and also in the network I built with Instagram. The incredible kindness of Instagram's "culinary" network is remarkable. This very friendly community has been very supportive. Finally, beyond the digital, the workshops that I organize allow me to meet other people ... that I hope we will be able to do it again soon.

What is perhaps the last thing you expected to do or learn in your life as an entrepreneur?

Over the last few years, I've been questioning myself a lot, I've had to step out of my comfort zone a few times for some projects. Video is a skill that is increasingly in demand and by my clients. This will be my next challenge! I'm fortunate to be part of some excellent creative networks. I will be able to rely on the right people!  Today, more than ever, training resources are more accessible. The challenge is to choose!

Elise, if you could change anything today to help develop The Pineapple Chef, what would you want to change? And what is your ambition for the next few years?

I would like to be able to have a studio so that I can work more quietly and better structure my professional life in relation to my personal life.

I need to put in place all the conditions to push my creativity and my demand for the content I offer. Gastronomy and plants are my anchors. To my great delight, they lead me to ever new and sometimes surprising fields.

 I like to share through my photos what I see. I am happy that this vision has become a professional reality. 

Time is my ally. I hope to continue to make great encounters to help The Pineapple chef grow.