Tiny food art sends SAM's fans on city-wide scavenger hunt

She steals her way through Ottawa neighbourhoods,leaving her curious mark in hidden places, careful to evade witnesses and avoid revealing her true identity.

Her alias is SAM, an acronym for Street Art Miniature, and the little, realistic culinarycreations she's plantedthroughout the city has scores of food sleuths on her trail, hungry for more.

SAM plants the tiny morsels, which have included penny-sizedpizzas, diminutivedishesof ice cream and puny Popsicles,on window ledges and posts, in dark alleys and on storefronts.

So farshe's secreted 400 of the littlewonders aroundthe city, all photographed and posted on Instagram, along with clues to theirlocation.

Inspired by London street art tour

SAM has been producing the ceramic miniatures for years, but got the idea to turn her food art into street art after a tour in London, England.

"I was so inspired.I thought, what can I do?What can I bring to Ottawa as street art?" SAM said.

So far, SAM has managed to keep her identity a secret. Until now even her gender was a mystery. She says she doesn't want people to approach her art with any preconceptions or foreknowledge about the person who made it. She just wants to make people smile.

"I find it really funny. It brings me a lot of joy to do it," she said from her studio, where she spends hours shaping and painting her tiny foods.

"The best part is when someone snaps a picture and tags me on Instagramand they tell me how much happiness it's brought to them. It was just such a wonderful thing to hear, that I had made someone's daywith just something silly like that."

SAM's fans love hunting for 'minis'

SAM's devoted fans say they love the thrill of the chase.

"I love the adventure, I love the treasure hunt. I love the fun and excitement of finding one," said Ashley White.

White and her friend Meghan McKenna saythe urban scavenger hunt has helped them discover their cityas they wander through neighbourhoods including Chinatown and Westboro looking for clues.

"When I was young I read a lot of Nancy Drew novels," said McKenna."In those books it's always those moments that lead up to solving the case that are the most exciting, and I pretty much go through that process when I'm hunting for a mini."