‘Bean’ sculpture on exhibit at Jelly Belly Wisconsin Visitor Center

A 10-ft. replica of Chicago's "Cloud Gate" was created with 120,000 jelly beans

Gloria Hafer, Culinary Arts Instructor for Chicago's After School Matters, poses under the giant chocolate "bean" sculpture covered in Jelly Belly jelly beans andJelly Bean Chocolate Dips now on display at Jelly Belly Visitor Center in Wisconsin. The candy creation is a replica of Chicago's "Cloud Gate" by sculptor Anish Kapoor, which sits in Millennium Park. Photo provided by Jelly Belly Candy Co.

It was only a matter of time before someone created a sculpture shaped like Chicago’s“ Cloud Gate ” — called “the bean” by locals — out of what many would argue are the most famous beans there are — Jelly Belly jelly beans.

Or, to be more specific, 120,000 Jelly Belly jelly beans. The 10-ft. long, 7-ft. wide sculpture is covered with 120,000 Jelly Bean Chocolate Dips and Jelly Belly jelly beans donated by Jelly Belly Candy Co . and features a chocolate-brown background as well as a colorful recreation of Chicago’s skyline.

Designed under the guidance of the professional chefs from The French Pastry School at Kennedy-King College of City Colleges of Chicago, the sculpture made its debut at The French Pastry School’s annual charity event, For the Love of Chocolate in February.

Now it’s on display at the Jelly Belly Visitor Center in Pleasant Prairie, Wis. (halfway between Milwaukee and Chicago) through May. 1.

High school students from Chicago's After School Matters' Culinary Arts Program and a team of pastry professionals put in 400 hours to complete the candy sculpture, placing each jelly bean by hand using melted chocolate.

For those who can't make the trip to view the chocolate sculpture, The Food Channel filmed the entire process from concept to creation and plans to release a documentary of the making of the candy creation.

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Crystal Lindell, Former editor-in-chief of Candy Industry Magazine. While here she has worked on Candy Industry Magazine, Food Engineering Magazine and Food Safety Strategies. She holds a master’s degree in public affairs reporting from the University of Illinois – Springfield and a bachelor’s degree in political science from Western Illinois University. And her favorite breakfast is a cup of espresso and Twix bar.