The setting is eerily calm.<br /><br />A beautiful girl sits on a bench surrounded by remnants of a party, while wild foxes roam and feast on her baked creations. Her gaze is lowered, and there is a mysterious atmosphere, with dark shadows concealing unknown dangers. <br /><br />If you are unsettled by this scene, this is exactly what the photographer <a target="_blank" target="_blank">Christine McConnell</a>, pictured above, was trying to achieve. In her images, the Los Angeles-based artist combines the glamor of 1950s pin-ups with Tim Burtone-esque elements of twisted fantasy. <br /><br />By <a target="_blank" target="_blank"><strong>Milena Veselinovic</strong></a>, for CNN
The setting is eerily calm.

A beautiful girl sits on a bench surrounded by remnants of a party, while wild foxes roam and feast on her baked creations. Her gaze is lowered, and there is a mysterious atmosphere, with dark shadows concealing unknown dangers.

If you are unsettled by this scene, this is exactly what the photographer Christine McConnell, pictured above, was trying to achieve. In her images, the Los Angeles-based artist combines the glamor of 1950s pin-ups with Tim Burtone-esque elements of twisted fantasy.

By Milena Veselinovic, for CNN
Courtesy Christine McConnell
A starring feature of McConnell's photos are her extraordinary cakes -- elaborate creations she bakes from scratch in her kitchen, marrying their delicious sweetness with varying degrees of menace. The terrifying mask shown above is in fact a cookie, made from nutmeg, milk, and sugar, and glazed with caramel. "I've always loved that Stepford Wives look, and I am very enamored with that tradition of early America," says McConnell, "but I also really love sci-fi, things which are spooky and a little bit creepy," she adds.
A starring feature of McConnell's photos are her extraordinary cakes -- elaborate creations she bakes from scratch in her kitchen, marrying their delicious sweetness with varying degrees of menace. The terrifying mask shown above is in fact a cookie, made from nutmeg, milk, and sugar, and glazed with caramel. "I've always loved that Stepford Wives look, and I am very enamored with that tradition of early America," says McConnell, "but I also really love sci-fi, things which are spooky and a little bit creepy," she adds.
Courtesy Christine McConnell
McConnell cites Alfred Hitchcock's films as inspiration for her aesthetics, as well as the work of American actor Vincent Pryce who starred in a various cult horror films of the 1950s: "I think he embodies the aristocratic creepiness and I'm very, very drawn to that look," she says.
McConnell cites Alfred Hitchcock's films as inspiration for her aesthetics, as well as the work of American actor Vincent Pryce who starred in a various cult horror films of the 1950s: "I think he embodies the aristocratic creepiness and I'm very, very drawn to that look," she says.
Courtesy Christine McConnell
The cakes are the traditional American fare of pies and cupcakes, but McConnell gives them a darker twist by shaping them as spiders, dragon flies, and menacing-looking snakes: "I want to create a juxtaposition of traditional femininity, and this idea of comforting safe early American life where everything is beautiful, with making people feel a little nervous and uncomfortable with creepy aspects," she says.
The cakes are the traditional American fare of pies and cupcakes, but McConnell gives them a darker twist by shaping them as spiders, dragon flies, and menacing-looking snakes: "I want to create a juxtaposition of traditional femininity, and this idea of comforting safe early American life where everything is beautiful, with making people feel a little nervous and uncomfortable with creepy aspects," she says.
Courtesy Christine McConnell
The photographer-baker normally starts with a sketch, mapping out what the finished product would look like, but sometimes she lets the monsters from the depths of her imagination run riot: "I made waffle cones and realized that they are kind of flimsy and you could bend them anyway you wanted, so then I decided to make tentacles and monster heads out of strawberries. It was exciting and fun, but my kitchen got completely demolished doing that," she says.
The photographer-baker normally starts with a sketch, mapping out what the finished product would look like, but sometimes she lets the monsters from the depths of her imagination run riot: "I made waffle cones and realized that they are kind of flimsy and you could bend them anyway you wanted, so then I decided to make tentacles and monster heads out of strawberries. It was exciting and fun, but my kitchen got completely demolished doing that," she says.
Courtesy Christine McConnell
McConnell, who sews her own vintage-style dresses, matches her garments to the cakes, choosing a color palette and then building the image around it. The photographer also works on all aspects of the image alone -- from shooting with a timer, to editing, setting up her own lighting, styling and set design.
McConnell, who sews her own vintage-style dresses, matches her garments to the cakes, choosing a color palette and then building the image around it. The photographer also works on all aspects of the image alone -- from shooting with a timer, to editing, setting up her own lighting, styling and set design.
Courtesy Christine McConnell
Usually, the pastries are completed within a day, but the cake shown above, which is a near-identical replica of McConnell's parents' house, took four days to finish: "It's the most complicated thing I've made." After she takes the photo, McConnell gives her tasty creations to family, friends and neighbors: "Sometimes their children are horrified with what I'm dropping off next door," she says.
Usually, the pastries are completed within a day, but the cake shown above, which is a near-identical replica of McConnell's parents' house, took four days to finish: "It's the most complicated thing I've made." After she takes the photo, McConnell gives her tasty creations to family, friends and neighbors: "Sometimes their children are horrified with what I'm dropping off next door," she says.
Courtesy Christine McConnell
McConnell has amassed over <a target="_blank" target="_blank">110,000 followers</a> (and counting) on Instagram, but says she is not after fame and fortune: "I love art and I love sugar and this is how I combined them."
McConnell has amassed over 110,000 followers (and counting) on Instagram, but says she is not after fame and fortune: "I love art and I love sugar and this is how I combined them."
Courtesy Christine McConnell
The 32-year-old gets most of her vintage set design materials from estate sales, roaming for 1950s typewriters, kitchen appliances and furniture: "It's kind of morbid but I love nothing more than looking through somebody's life and finding these magical antique things," she says.
The 32-year-old gets most of her vintage set design materials from estate sales, roaming for 1950s typewriters, kitchen appliances and furniture: "It's kind of morbid but I love nothing more than looking through somebody's life and finding these magical antique things," she says.
Courtesy Christine McConnell
"Sometimes, I'll see a weird logo somewhere, or something bizarre, and an idea will start to form in my head. I think that the world is beautiful sometimes, and it's scary and terrible other times, so I try to incorporate that into my photos," McConnell says.
"Sometimes, I'll see a weird logo somewhere, or something bizarre, and an idea will start to form in my head. I think that the world is beautiful sometimes, and it's scary and terrible other times, so I try to incorporate that into my photos," McConnell says.
Courtesy Christine McConnell