Food and Painting

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The best food pictures in magazine, cookbooks and film not only have the most authentic and honestly cooked food but also employ the most masterful use of light and color. Some of the most inspiring images of to me have always been the works of the Dutch Masters whose work I have only seen in books and films–one reason I’ve longed to visit Amsterdam.

Our visit to the famous Rijksmuseum kind of blew my mind. Standing right in front of them, these 17th century images in person gives one an emotional charge. We have become so used to photography’s realism that we forget how evocative and powerful a painted work can be.

Vermeer’s Kitchen Maid evokes the most peaceful yet simple moment n time–a kitchen maid pouring milk. The bits of light reflected off the bread catch our eye but the total tone of the painting establishes a feeling of calm.

In Nicolaus Maes’s Prayer Without End, our pious subject is dining on a simple meal of porridge, bread, salmon, butter and beer. While the food seems a humble offering, it’s a meal I’d gratefully sit down to today. Again, light transports us beyond the food.

And Jan Davidz de Heem’s Festoon of Fruits and Flowers depicts a colorful display of beautiful yet precious flaura. I don’t imagine a pomegranate was an everyday food stuff in 1640’s in Holland.

My photo of Amstel harbor at dawn gives a smal taste of the quality of light all around here. It’s no wonder this country has produced some of the finest painters of all time.

Inspiration like this inspires me to keep evolving creatively. What inspires you?

Best,
LSQ