Foodly Doodly Doo: Jan and Ellen Prerovsky
Prague, Czech Republic
Jan Prerovsky is a vegan food photographer. Ellen Prerovsky is a dressmaker and vegan food stylist. Together, they form the enchanting team at Foodly Doodly Doo, a multi-media production company focused on turning vegan food into film stars and runway models.
Photo by Jan Prerovsky, Foodly Doodly Doo
What is Foodly Doodly Doo?
Jan describes Foodly Doodly Doo as a love child. He said, “It gives Ellen and me the chance to showcase and develop our artistic visions. But we find a much deeper meaning in what we do that goes far beyond making pretty pictures and amusing animated videos. In our work at Foodly Doodly Doo, we see a chance to do our small part in promoting the vegan movement.
In this sense, the more we can expand and include other people, the more successful our efforts will be to grow the vegan movement. The bigger our presence, the greater its impact on promoting veganism,” he said.
What we want to create and contribute to at Foodly Doodly Doo is a colorful, happy, and cruelty-free world, a Utopian paradise.
From the catwalk right onto the plate, Foodly Doodly Doo blends together the creative genres of fashion and food for fun, entertainment, and heightened awareness about vegan food. Photos by Jan Prerovsky, Foodly Doodly Doo.
How do you have fun with recipes?
“We are always looking for new perspectives and different angles to tell our story of being vegan. No challenge is too great. And believe me, building these statues and creating fashion images out of vegetables has been a real challenge because we are keen on avoiding post production techniques such as the use of Photoshop as much as possible,” Ellen said.
“By giving vegetables a fashionable look, Jan and I promote plant based nutrition on a wholly new and exciting level. Our vegan video production series Fun with recipes uses photo-storytelling and stop-motion animation to lure viewers into doing what I like doing most — making healthy vegan recipes.
“I don’t care how well it’s done, no meal will ever be as satisfying or as deliciously nourishing as the one you make yourself,” Ellen said.
I don’t care how well it’s done, no meal will ever be as satisfying or as deliciously nourishing as the one you make yourself.
In their Fun with Recipes vegan food photography series, Jan and Ellen present a parallel universe to introduce their culinary delight Zucchini Rolls with Cashew Ricotta.
Each step of Foodly Doodly Doo’s take on an easy and tasty recipe for pumpkin ketchup was inspired by a different 20th century artist. Photos by Jan Prerovsky, Foodly Doodly Doo
What are some of the real opportunities you see for growing the vegan movement?
“Vegetables have an image problem and are mostly viewed as side dishes in our cultural space. They don’t get the same multi-million Euro marketing budgets that soda and fast food get. With our work at Foodly Doodly Doo, we strive to change the image of vegetables by putting them at their rightful place — on center stage,” Jan said.
Foodly Doodly Doo is meant to reach out and include others, free from any ideology or moral patronage. We think that if you want to change people`s minds and habits you need to do this on a more subtle level. Humor and whimsy, the creation of positive emotions, will, in the long run, prove to be an effective and strong tool for opening hearts and minds and easing the frontiers. To make a discussion on a rational level possible,” he said.
The vegan food photography series Still Lifes inspired by Old Masters recreates the original paintings of some of Europe’s most renowned artists from the Early Renaissance through to the Romantic movement, roughly from 1300 to 1800. Photos by Jan Prerovsky, Foodly Doodly Doo.
Jan and Ellen Prerovsky put their unconventional spin on posters to create a series called Vegan Propaganda, old posters look new!
How does Foodly Doodly Doo handle sensitive issues about food?
“We use humor in everything we do — to promote the plant-based lifestyle, to create interest in vegetables, and to increase curiosity about veganism. Above all, we create positive emotions about vegan food,” Ellen said.
Ellen and Jan believe diet has a lot to do with our upbringing and what our parents cooked for us when we were little.
“We automatically take over parts of their habits and preferences and develop an emotional bond to them. It’s very difficult to divert people from their habits, especially when both sides have become entrenched in their positions. When discussions include animal rights, health, and how to deal with our planet, talking about food can get sensitive,” Jan said.
“We try to keep topics about food fun. Our goal is to intrigue others about vegan food so the next time they shop for groceries, they will stay a little longer in the vegetable section,” he said.
Ellen shops for produce to use in vegan recipes, as photography props, and to carve into vegan sculptures. Frequent trips to the farmers market around the corner from the Foodly Doodly Doo flat at Naměstí Jiřího z Poděbrad in Prague provide her with much of what she needs for vegan meals and food styling projects. Photo by Jan Prerovsky, Foodly Doodly Doo.
When discussions include animal rights, health, and how to deal with our planet, talking about food can get sensitive.
What is Foodly Doodly Doo striving to create?
“We are on the endless quest for innovation, looking for ways to style and photograph vegan food so it doesn’t always look like what you might expect to see. Our Food Without Dish vegan photography series is an example of how we look at food outside the frame,” Jan said.
“What I really enjoy most about food photography, besides the great food of course, is that you are basically starting out with a clean canvas and a vision of how to fill it. We gradually add objects together, set the light and atmosphere, and tweak things around a bit here and there until everything falls together nicely and a new photo is brought to light from the shadows of our imaginations,” Jan said.
“Painting away with food and light in our little studio fills us with a certain feeling of fulfillment. Having worked in almost every area of photography, from celebrity over to reportage, portrait and then architecture, food photography gives me total control over my subject matter, allowing me to construct entire worlds that get people thinking about vegetables, fruits, and veganism,” Jan said.
“Ultimately, what we want to create and contribute to at Foodly Doodly Doo is a colorful, happy, and cruelty-free world, a Utopian paradise,” he said.
Read more about Foodly Doodly Doo and its creators Jan and Ellen Prerovsky.
The Food Without Dish vegan food photography series shows that food photography doesn’t always need borders to make an impact. Photos by Jan Prerovsky, Foodly Doodly Doo.
Foodly Doodly Doo's newest creations
The opening of Foodly Doodly Doo’s eShop in February 2022 marked a milestone in its mission to reach more people with the vegan message. All of the merchandise is high quality, 100% vegan, and ecologically sustainable. The products are printed in France, packed without plastic, and shipped with a carbon neutral footprint.
Fresh ideas and tasty food await the one who seizes the day.
Ellen and Jan Prerovsky, the creative duo at Foodly Doodly Doo, welcomes collaborations with companies and individuals who embrace the spirit of fun and creativity and want to create something memorable. Photo by Jan Prerovsky, Foodly Doodly Doo.
Follow Foodly Doodly Doo
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