CQUniversity's Professor Donna Lee Brien* recently featured during a popular culture forum entitled Costume, Cake and the Consumption of Desire: On the Wedding Feast, the Wedding Cake and the Wedding Dress.

The Noosa Campus-based academic chaired the discussion and presented on ‘The wedding feast as event', during the event hosted by Southern Cross University.

Professor Donna Lee Brien (right) with other presenters at the forum. Below is the gallery and a photo of the exhibition. LINK for larger images

Professor Brien's presentation surveyed the wedding feast from biblical times to the current day, including its representation in fairy tales and art, as well as in menus from Margaret Fulton and Nigella Lawson.

It also surveyed what Professor Brien called ‘the fast before the feast', commenting on the bridal diet and fitness industry of television shows, books and magazine coverage and Royal bride Kate Middleton, now Duchess of Cambridge.

This forum was held at The Channon Gallery in the Lismore area, in association with Denise N Rall's exhibition ‘The Bride's Banquet: Costume and the Consumption of Desire', an installation of costumed mannequins which explored the staging of the bride as confection.

Other presenters came from SCU and the University of Queensland.

* Donna Lee Brien is Professor of Creative Industries and an Assistant Dean, Research and Postgraduate. Donna is currently the Special Issues Editor of TEXT: The Journal of Writing and Writing Courses, a Foundation Editorial Board member of Locale: The Australasian-Pacific Journal of Regional Food Studies and Past President of the Australasian Association of Writing Programs. Her current research includes projects on the impact of Australian food writers and food writing.

CQUniversity now offers a Graduate Certificate in Creative Industries and  Master of Creative Enterprise (Creative Practice).