This pig diagram below might be the most famous one of our time. It's a throwback to the glory days of English butchery and meat markets, but it's become a reference point itself. It stands for London's St. John restaurants, which stand for chef Fergus Henderson, who stands for so much that is joyful and sweet and true in the world of nose-to-tail eating, and beyond.

I love beautifully designed butchery diagrams, especially of pigs, especially this one. But the butcher's diagram is not a pig. It's a pig-shaped cluster of potential deliciousness. The pig as pork, as parts. The meat section is a technical illustration, a straightforward map for meat-cutters and buyers, showing which words go with which parts. A simple what's what that reveals other information, too. Industry (breed), economy (cuts) and culture (illustration--is the pig pretty or ugly? Dead or alive?).

San Francisco-based artist Alyson Thomas deciphers the butcher's diagram by reimagining it, again and again. I love how her versions of the pig chart vary so much in style and format (paint, paper, plastic and frosting, to name a few).

Alyson Thomas had her first solo show last month; shop her Etsy store here.