Tasting Kitchen (TK) Magazine Captures Top Honors in Two Categories at the 2014 SOPA Awards for Editorial Excellence

TK Art Director Alicia Beebe is honored for Excellence in Magazine Design while TK Director of Photography David Hartung is honored for Excellence in Feature Photography.

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Tasting Kitchen

Jun 13, 2014, 07:39 ET

HONG KONG, June 13, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Tasting Kitchen (TK) -- Hong Kong & Macau's stylish gastronomic glossy -- won top honors in the Society of Publishers in Asia (SOPA) 2014 Editorial Awards, the region's top publishing prize, in two categories: Excellence in Feature Photography and Excellence in Magazine Design.

TK Director of Photography David Hartung was honored with an award for Excellence in Feature Photography. For the magazine's Flavor DNA issue, TK #10, which delved into the source flavors of different Asian cuisines, Hartung visited the world's largest spice market in New Delhi, India. He brought back images that transported readers to the market and made them feel like they were right there.

Judges cited the beautifully rich colors of his photos and the way his photo essay delved into the many different aspects of the market, including memorable images of the spices and portraits honoring the porters and merchants who make the market thrive.

"As a professional photographer working in the media industry for several decades, it is a wonderful feeling to receive such recognition from my peers," said Hartung.

"David has an incisive instinct for composition, a masterful understanding of light and an empathetic way of appreciating his human subjects," said TK Editor Jeff Hammons. "Lots of photographers shoot an occasional great picture. David comes back with extraordinarily engaging, beautiful images every time he goes out. The work he has done for TK has helped the magazine to earn a reputation as one of the most visually stunning in the region."

The winner of this year's SOPA Award for Excellence in Magazine Design, TK Art Director Alicia Beebe helped launch Tasting Kitchen two years ago and is responsible for establishing the distinctive, elegant and understated style of the magazine. A graduate of the Rhode Island School of Design, Beebe says that one of her goals as a designer has been to work unobtrusively to set a beautiful stage upon which the contents of the magazine can shine.

"Respect for our readers is our starting point," she says. "TK's design is very much a collaborative effort. A team of excellent writers, photographers, editors, and translators all work together with a high level of trust and respect."

For TK's ninth issue, Treasures of the Sea, she created a beautifully simple cover using Hartung's photo of three sea urchins, and she found ways to present a wide variety of material -- including features about seafood dining utensils, gourmet restaurants, a wholesale seafood market and unusual sea creatures from around the globe -- in unique and memorable ways, while always maintaining her trademark elegant style. Commenting on Beebe's work, the SOPA judges wrote: "Unlike the clutter in so many of the entries in this category, this issue gives design space -- like a leisurely meal to be enjoyed."

"Alicia uses color and geometry to create variety and rhythm and beauty, and her work propels readers through the pages of the magazine while also tempting them to linger and appreciate each page," said TK Editor Jeff Hammons. "She delivers lovely results on every page without ever calling attention to her own work. We all love working with her."

ABOUT TASTING KITCHEN (TK) Tasting Kitchen (TK) is on track to become the region's leading luxury gastronomic, lifestyle, and travel magazine. Launched just two years ago, TK is published every two months with text in English and Chinese and celebrates the Pearl River Delta's finest restaurants, greatest chefs and most delicious food. TK is distributed free of charge at more than 2,000 locations in Hong Kong, Macau, and mainland China including 800 fine restaurants, at nearly all of the region's best hotels, at dozens of private membership clubs, on ferries, and in airport lounges. TK is also on sale at newsstands across the region, in bookstores, wine shops and gourmet food emporiums, with a total circulation of 35,000 in Hong Kong and 15,000 in Macau.   TK also has a dynamic social media presence, with over 45,000 Facebook fans: http://facebook.com/tastingkitchen. Below please find the link to TK's archives: http://tasting-kitchen.com.  For more information about SOPA and the annual SOPA awards, visit: http://www.sopawards.com/