Butterflies and All Things Sweet

Brief: Conceptualise a book for Hong Kong restaurant and style icon, Bonnae Gokson, that distils the essence of her extraordinary cakes and fascinating life into an exquisite coffee table tome.

Butterflies and All Things Sweet is not a cookbook but a visual feast. It explores the ingredients, ideas and inspiration behind the unique cakes that encapsulate Bonnae Gokson’s vision and energy, with a nod to the butterfly that’s synonymous with her brand. Her cosmopolitan life and passion for food, culture, fashion and the arts fuels her creativity.

Every cake is a celebration of life’s ephemeral sweetness and this book indulges in the beauty of them all. From backstage couture to a children’s party, we created an armchair journey through Bonnae’s influences and occasions with images we sourced globally and shot with our teams in Sydney and in Hong Kong.

Butterflies and All Things Sweet was published in 2013 with the New York launch hosted by Ralph Lauren at his 888 Madison store. It went on to win awards internationally.

Winner Photography/Art category: Paris Book Festival 2014.
Winner Publication category: Sydney Design Awards 2014.
Silver Winner Coffee Table Book category: IBPA Benjamin Franklin Awards 2014.