Food

Food and meals have fascinated artists for centuries. If some of them are interested in still lifes and vanitas artworks, many use food in order to criticise the over abundance that our consumerist society encourages. They create figurative art evoking food from fast food chains and supermarkets as well as the highly branded packaging. Artsper presents a selection that will delight your senses, discover famous foods and brands from our consumer society and traditional representations of food: a real artistic menu that will whet your appetite!


But before exploring our selection, why not take a few moments to explore the relationship that links art and food? Eating is a necessary activity for human survival and food plays an important role in our societies and cultures, so it's not surprising that it is a popular subject in the history in art. In Western art, food has been used symbolically, for illustrating a theme and in order to allow artists to showcase their talent in portraying any subject realistically.


In Ancient Greece, artists represented banquets and feasts through painting and mosaics. In Ancient Egypt, drawings of food were found inside funeral chambers as Egyptians believed that due to magical properties, these drawings would provide the sustenance that the deceased needed in the afterlife. However, it was especially from the Renaissance onwards that food became a more recurrent theme. From the 17th century, especially in Holland, Spain and Italy, food became a separate theme and many still lifes focused solely on the subject. Painters depicted with an impressive level of realism and detail abundant displays of food which often included game, seafood, exotic citruses and grapes. Many such paintings have been interpreted as referring to the transient nature of luxury or the dangers of greed. By the end of the 19th century however, artists turned more to genre scenes and depicted food in more realistic settings. As the Realism movement flourished, they even depicted peasant meals.  


The arrival of consumerism in the mid 20th century disrupted the role of food in art. Food started to be carefully packaged and branded and it became a means of communication. Several food items such the Coca Cola bottle, the Campbell's canned food or the classic hamburger have reached the rank of icon. Artists often use such foods in their work to comment on and criticise the society around them.


In contemporary art, artists continue to depict foods in paintings but they also use it to create installations, performance art and photographs. Today there seem to be an infinite number of possibilities for food in art.


If you're looking for a painting for your kitchen, why not choose one that reflects the activities taking place in this oh-so-important room? The same goes for your dining room! On Artsper you'll find a wide range of choice, from classical still lifes painted with impressive realism to pop art works and almost abstract ones that evoke food and meals only in passing. With our selection, you're sure to find the work of art for you.

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Painting, Cake, Igor Sventitski

Cake

Igor Sventitski

Painting - 55 x 75 x 2 cm Painting - 21.7 x 29.5 x 0.8 inch

€2,100

Sculpture, Winemaker, Jaromir Gargulak

Winemaker

Jaromir Gargulak

Sculpture - 17.5 x 17 x 22 cm Sculpture - 6.9 x 6.7 x 8.7 inch

€6,000

Painting, La courge, Laurence Gasior

La courge

Laurence Gasior

Painting - 46 x 55 x 2 cm Painting - 18.1 x 21.7 x 0.8 inch

€1,330

Painting, Banana, CHROMARTIS

Banana

CHROMARTIS

Painting - 80 x 120 x 2 cm Painting - 31.5 x 47.2 x 0.8 inch

€2,000

Painting, Manzana roja, CHROMARTIS

Manzana roja

CHROMARTIS

Painting - 80 x 60 x 2 cm Painting - 31.5 x 23.6 x 0.8 inch

€1,500

Painting, Mango, CHROMARTIS

Mango

CHROMARTIS

Painting - 80 x 60 x 2 cm Painting - 31.5 x 23.6 x 0.8 inch

€1,500

Painting, Figs, John Kilduff

Figs

John Kilduff

Painting - 50.8 x 61 x 2.5 cm Painting - 20 x 24 x 1 inch

€1,463

Fine Art Drawings, Still Life, Sirio Pellegrini

Still Life

Sirio Pellegrini

Fine Art Drawings - 49 x 34 x 0.5 cm Fine Art Drawings - 19.3 x 13.4 x 0.2 inch

€2,200

Painting, By the sea, Peter Tovpev

By the sea

Peter Tovpev

Painting - 75 x 85 x 2 cm Painting - 29.5 x 33.5 x 0.8 inch

€370

Painting, Pears 1, Bill Stone

Pears 1

Bill Stone

Painting - 76.2 x 76.2 x 3.8 cm Painting - 30 x 30 x 1.5 inch

€2,378

Painting, Bananas, Bill Stone

Bananas

Bill Stone

Painting - 61 x 61 x 2 cm Painting - 24 x 24 x 0.8 inch

€1,463

Painting, Beef, Alexander Levich

Beef

Alexander Levich

Painting - 50 x 70 x 2 cm Painting - 19.7 x 27.6 x 0.8 inch

€870

Painting, Bimbo, Joaquim Falcó

Bimbo

Joaquim Falcó

Painting - 130 x 97 cm Painting - 51.2 x 38.2 inch

€3,600

Painting, Vermut, Josep Moscardó

Vermut

Josep Moscardó

Painting - 86 x 70 cm Painting - 33.9 x 27.6 inch

€2,000

Photography, Breakfast, Paris, Uwe Ommer

Breakfast, Paris

Uwe Ommer

Photography - 44 x 32 x 0.3 cm Photography - 17.3 x 12.6 x 0.1 inch

€1,738

Painting, Dolce Vita, Anna Varella

Dolce Vita

Anna Varella

Painting - 60 x 62 x 3 cm Painting - 23.6 x 24.4 x 1.2 inch

€3,500

Painting, Seedlings, Michael Gorban

Seedlings

Michael Gorban

Painting - 60 x 50 x 2.5 cm Painting - 23.6 x 19.7 x 1 inch

€2,696

Painting, Apples, Michael Gorban

Apples

Michael Gorban

Painting - 100 x 76 x 2.5 cm Painting - 39.4 x 29.9 x 1 inch

€3,250

Painting, Pears, Michael Gorban

Pears

Michael Gorban

Painting - 100 x 76 x 2.5 cm Painting - 39.4 x 29.9 x 1 inch

€3,250

Painting, Plums, Michael Gorban

Plums

Michael Gorban

Painting - 101.5 x 76 x 2.5 cm Painting - 40 x 29.9 x 1 inch

€3,250

Painting, Poivrons Frais, J Paul

Poivrons Frais

J Paul

Painting - 55 x 46 x 2 cm Painting - 21.7 x 18.1 x 0.8 inch

€860

Painting, Avocado, CHROMARTIS

Avocado

CHROMARTIS

Painting - 80 x 100 x 2 cm Painting - 31.5 x 39.4 x 0.8 inch

€1,750

Painting, red banane, PyB

red banane

PyB

Painting - 30 x 30 x 8 cm Painting - 11.8 x 11.8 x 3.1 inch

€180

Painting, Easter, Oksana Ivanyuk

Easter

Oksana Ivanyuk

Painting - 30 x 40 x 2 cm Painting - 11.8 x 15.7 x 0.8 inch

€270

Sculpture, Burger, BrickBoardBuilder

Burger

BrickBoardBuilder

Sculpture - 79 x 79 x 5 cm Sculpture - 31.1 x 31.1 x 2 inch

€2,000