A few days ago, and to celebrate the last Earth Day 2023, wepaid a visit to natural food cook and fashion designer,Alice Roca, who received The Animals Observatory team at her country house in Normandy (France). Alice, also known as the name of her blog project,Alice in foodis an ecology advocate who brings together her three passions in a remarkable way. Her knowledge of cooking, ecology and fashion design allows her to create the most outstanding food recipes, which not only taste spectacular (and we can vouch for it), but they also look like they come from an art exhibition in Paris, and, of course, the used ingredients are usually grown in her own vegetables garden. Her recent book, À ma tableis a proof of that. But let’s talk about all this with her.
Alice Roca: “Living with nature is now a part of me”
People
5 minute read
Words by The Animals Observatory | Apr 24, 2023
Alice Roca and her children Aliocha and Simona. Pictures by @KikuPinol.
Alice, you come from the world of fashion, specifically fashion design, but now you work full time in gastronomy, have you found a creative bridge between both disciplines?
They are totally linked together as I have the same interests in both of them. To assemble or to compose with colors, for instance, both in fashion fabrics and in food. In fashion you create a look, and with food it’s also a kind of look, besides how it tastes. It’s the same in fashion. When you design clothes, then you have to wear it, so it’s a way to improve it. The connections are very strong, and I used not to connect them. I used to think about myself as a fashion designer and then on the other side of my life I was a foodie star. But now I see myself as both at the same time. So yes, there is a creative bridge between these two worlds and it is very strong for me, so I have found my happiness. I like cooking so much, but I also like giving myself artistic directions for making the food look good, and to create a kind of set for the images I create with my recipes.
There is a creative bridge between the world of cooking and fashion and it is very strong for me.
Alice Roca
How would you describe your cuisine style?
It is very spontaneous, inspired by flowers and plants from my garden. I mostly use vegetables, but without excluding fish or meat, because I am not a person for only one thing, and I think it is important to have variety. There is also a country style inspiration, because I am living there. I would say it is both family food as well as aesthetic food, and this is what I like. I like that my food can go in different directions.
Alice Roca and her children Aliocha and Simona. Picture by @KikuPinol.
You live in the country after spending some time in the crowded and lively Paris, how does it feel this 180 degrees change?
Yes, I am living in the countryside. It’s already been seven years. For sure, it is a completely different way of living than the big city that is Paris. In fact, I didn’t really figure out what it would mean to change places before, I just decided it with my wife and we were like “just try it”, so we wanted to raise our children in the countryside and not in the city, that was the first motivation, and now it’s totally part of my life, I can’t imagine myself living in the city anymore. Still, I live only an hour and a half from Paris, and I still do a lot of shootings and meetings there. I go at least once a week. It is still a place full of ideas and energy which I take back to the quiet of the countryside.
Alice Roca and her children Aliocha and Simona. Picture by @KikuPinol.
On the occasion of Earth Day 2023, would you say that you live in sync with nature and that you take environmental values into account in your daily life?
Of course, nature is very important, and living with nature in front of my eyes every day, every night is now a part of me. When I was living in Paris, I was already very involved in ecology awareness, but now it is part of my daily life.
What about your kids? How aware are they about environmental issues?
Well, I don’t want them to be stressed about it, neither responsible for what is happening in order for them not to be anxious. I prefer them to dream about a new world in which they do things better than our parents or than ourselves did. Step by step and gently. For example, I see Aliocha is very aware and attentive about ecology. Simona is only three, and she already has good habits. We are eating well, we are eating vegetables that we don’t buy with plastic around, because we don’t want to use it. If we are going to a picnic, everything is homemade, with recycled paper, and we don’t throw away plastic bags. For me the best way is not to push too much but instead teaching them to be careful about nature, that everything is very fragile.
How did you learn about The Animals Observatory?
It’s already been a while, because I am in the fashion world and I already followed Laia Aguilar’s career from before. I have a son who is already fourteen now, and so I knew the brand from its beginning. I was buying most of its clothes from the french website Smallable, because The Animals Observatory always has really good selections.
I prefer my children to dream about a new world in which they do things better than our parents or than ourselves, but not to stress them about that.
Alice Roca
Simona and Aliocha wearing The Animals Observatory Spring-Summer 2023 looks. Picture by @KikuPinol.
What is it that you like the most about the brand?
I know about the sustainable policies of The Animals Observatory, and this is one of the main reasons for which I love the brand, aside from the styles and the colors. But it is very important to me to buy clothes that are part of the ecology movement.
Last but not least, which looks would you like to highlight about Spring-Summer 2023 by The Animals Observatory?
It’s very difficult to choose from the whole Spring-Summer 2023 collection by The Animals Observatory. However, I really like the red overalls, I really love these kinds of pieces. I also like the yellow seahorse sweatshirt with a cool sketch of a face on it, and also the pink sweatshirt and pink pants that Simona is wearing.
Simona and Aliocha wearing The Animals Observatory Spring-Summer 2023 looks. Picture by @KikuPinol.
Earth Day is held once a year in order to pay tribute to the achievements of the environmental movement. Its aim is also to raise awareness of the need to protect the Earth’s natural resources for the future generations. To achieve this goal, parents can sort out all kinds of earth day activities for kids, such as making their own recycled paper, composting or even starting their own gardens.
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