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Art History: Food and Shelter
The individual homes are the one I think we are more familiar with; we leave in one of those types of families, and is amazing how these types of homes change according to the cultures among the world. In the United States, these homes are usually one story of two-story. Usually, the frame is made of wood. The walls are made of sheetrock; there are many sizes and finishes that may vary according to the host’s tastes but usually have a similar style, while in Mexico or the houses are made of bricks and concrete. However, we may think that the native tribes’ domestic homes are different from what we are familiar with. Maybe we should believe in those countries where there is a significant bridge between the social classes. I will give you an example of my city, Guadalajara; there is a big street called “La Calzada Independencia,” and usually, it has been said that if you live on the east side, you are low, and if you live in the west side, you are rich. And you can see huge differences between the houses on one side of the city from the ones on the other side, and this difference is in a town, we are not talking about a whole country of an entire continent. Ere person expresses its type of art in how they want their house to be designed and built and how they like his house decorated.
The table of Jan Davidzs de Heem’s “A Table of Desserts” has an array of different unrelated objects. These are diverse, and they come from different seasons, and there is a half-eaten dessert on a tray. Also, there is a mixture of several glasses and bottles and a musical instrument on the table. The way these objects are presented could be an illustration of the form of emptiness, especially those regarding Christian values. On the other hand, Wayne Thiebaud’s “Pie Counter” is drawn to represent some of the ordinary foods that are eaten by Americans. Most of the foods have a ritual and cultural meaning. Comparing it with the “Table of Desserts,” the “Pie Counter” is more of a representation of the Pop Art movement. The painting is simple, and the choice of subject is also ideal. Both paintings are a visual display of food. However, “Pie Counter” focuses on a famous icon instead of body nutrition, while “A Table of Desserts” represents a good quality of food.
Dutch Still Life
The still life is a painting that represents an arrangement of several lifeless objects. These objects are those that people interact with daily, and they are either natural or manufactured ones. They include flowers, dead fish, wine, food, pottery, bottles, and books. As such, the painting represents things that cannot move or those that are dead. They are either realistic or abstract, depending on when they were created and their culture therein. The artists are in complete control of the subject in this painting and the lighting and the context. It is a symbolic and metaphorical way to express the artists’ ideas. It is also an essential way of studying various elements representing an accurate representation of different art principles.
The Vanitas Theme
The vanitas represents emptiness in life, and it is also a transient nature of vanity. It has a deeper meaning that showcases that everything on earth is not permanent. The earthly things, for instance, are impermanent, and death is inescapable. According to this theme, emptiness is inevitable, and human beings cannot go against time’s general passage. Everyone will eventually die, and the different paintings, such as the still life food by Thiebaud, represent the transience of life. For instance, grapes and grapevines are associated with Jesus because he used them to describe them in parables. Most people also use apples as a way of describing the idea of redemption. This representation of fruits in the Vanitas works helps remind people about the transience of life and the bestowed beauty in life. What matters the most is not life, but what is behind this life is literary a supernatural being. As such, the rotting of the fruits is a necessary representation of how life ends. Thiebaud’s still food painting shows how beauty and abundance exist in the natural world, and he tries to connect it symbolically with the meaning of life. It is a portrayal of human-made as well as natural objects that are seemingly real. As such, they are a representation of symbolism regarding the realities of life. They represent Christian iconography where cherries are a representation of the Paradise, and they are explicit references of the Eucharist.