CHICAGO — The medium may indeed be the message, as Marshall McLuhan once told us, but what to make of a recent morning watching a group of people making messages and then eating them with delight?
Esteemed artist Nick Cave was standing alongside his creative and life partner Bob Faust inside Eli’s Cheesecake bakery/retail shop/cafe on the city’s Northwest Side. They were wearing gloves and decorating mini cheesecakes, very tiny mini cheesecakes known as Cuties, one-inch by one-inch morsels.
They were aided by some enthusiastic young pastry chefs as well as Marc and Maureen Schulman, the couple that runs the operation. They were all in the playful business of dipping tiny cheesecakes into vats of variously colored chocolate and affixing symbols on their tops.
“Just grab one and bite,” said Maureen.
This was part of one of the most unusual but encouraging collaborations in the city’s history. It was hatched in April when the Schulmans, Cave and Faust were among the recipients at Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s Medal of Honor ceremony, which, according to the city, is an event for those “who have demonstrated a passionate commitment to public service, to uplifting residents of Chicago’s 77 neighborhoods, and to bettering the lives of all who reside in the city.”
More than 15 individuals and organizations were honored and as people were milling about awaiting the arrival of the mayor, the Schulmans introduced themselves to Cave and Faust.
“Of course I knew who Nick was,” said Maureen. “I have long been an admirer and think his art is spectacular. So, we said hello and started talking and the next thing you know we had made plans to collaborate.”
She actually did not expect much, knowing that Cave and Faust were very busy putting the finishing touches on an exhibition called “Forothermore,” which was Cave’s first major career retrospective. It was to open in May at the Museum of Contemporary Art and was scheduled to run into early October.
“I hoped they liked the idea but I knew how busy they were,” said Maureen. “Once the show opened I was its biggest groupie. I was going there, taking family and friends, at least once a week.”
She wasn’t the only one. The show was a sensation, drawing huge crowds. It was sensational too. My Tribune colleague Christopher Borrelli spent some time with Cave and observed, in part, “Since coming to Chicago in the late 1980s and teaching at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, the latest Nick Cave wonder has been more likely experienced elsewhere — Austin, Sydney, Times Square, Harvard Business School. Yet Cave, a Missouri native, is firmly based in Chicago.
“I have no idea why it took so long to do a big Chicago show,” Cave said at the time. “I’m really not sure. I’ve been working all over the world. I can’t be home waiting for something to happen, so it happens when it happens, and now that the opportunity is here, I’m all in.”
The MCA sits across Chicago Avenue from the Lurie Children’s Hospital, which was built on the spot that was once Eli’s the Place for Steak. Eli was Eli Schulman and his restaurant was a popular hangout for celebrities of all sorts. Frank Sinatra gave him a watch and former Illinois Gov. Jim Thompson once said, “Eli is the man more responsible than any other for convincing me that I could be governor of this state.”
One night in 1977, a diner in Eli’s restaurant complained that the cantaloupe he had been served “tasted like a potato.” In his kitchen, Eli got to work and after much experimentation developed a recipe for a dessert that pleased everyone. His Eli’s Chicago’s Finest Cheesecake was the hit of the first Taste of Chicago in 1980, and was soon being produced for other restaurants and retail outlets. In 1984 Eli’s only child, Marc, left a career as a historic preservation attorney to become president of the operation and sales have grown steadily since.
Eli was what is known as a “soft touch.” His son will often evoke a couple of his father’s adages — ”Charity will never bust you” and “Treat others as if you were the other” — as a way of explaining his and his company’s philanthropic ways.
“So, a few weeks passed and then I heard from Nick and Bob and they were ready. Amazing. They had selected the Cuties and wanted to create on them messages that echoed what Nick designed for his exhibit’s Spinner Forest segment,” Maureen said. “We were so thrilled and we got to work.”
Cave and Faust designed colorful packaging. “And we made stencils to make it easier to adorn the Cuties. How much dry ice was needed for shipping? There were a lot of details but we figured it all out in time,” said Maureen.
“Nick Cave X Eli’s Cheesecake Limited Edition Cuties” are chocolate-covered cheesecake squares, each a different color, flavor (vanilla, raspberry, lemon, chocolate-vanilla and dulce de leche) and topped with symbolic messages: a peace sign, heart, equal sign, smiley face and star.
“Peace and love equals happiness and …” explained Marc.
“The star because everybody is a star,” Cave chimed in.
“It’s such a hopeful message,” said Maureen.
They became available for purchase on Tuesday, two sets (10 Cuties) priced at $125, with all net proceeds going to Cave’s and Faust’s Facility Foundation, a nonprofit supporting young and underrepresented artists with scholarships, commissions and other opportunities.
“I was so very intrigued by the idea,” said Cave. “And I couldn’t be happier with the result. I think this is a very important message to the world.”
A person brought up the notion that some people might not eat the treats but rather keep them as ice-boxed artwork.
“Possible I suppose, but they are meant to be eaten,” said Faust. “And there’s no exclusivity to the work. It’s cheesecake. It can go into anybody’s hands.”
After their assembly line chores, the Schulmans and Cave and Faust walked through the bustling and massive bakery and talked. There was some concern expressed that orders might swell since “Forothermore” is scheduled to open at New York City’s Guggenheim Museum on Nov. 18.
“Will we have enough?” asked Cave. “What would happen if we are on a morning TV show and showing the Cuties and the orders start flowing in?”
A nice problem to have, I suppose.
Cave said, “I see these as guideposts as well as filters that can warm and connect us to each other.”
Marc added, “We have always looked at food as a way to unite people.”
He handed Cave and Faust a cheesecake on their way home, full size.
