My Kid Could Paint That

Pomiculture

Michelangelo Caravaggio, Bacchus, 1595

On this final edition of Pomiculture we return to the 16th century for a taste of some sweet decadence. This
time, it's Michelangelo Caravaggio's Bacchus.  Bacchus was the god of wine, but was also known for his madness and ecstasy. Caravaggio's portrayal of Bacchus is more reminiscent of a drunk youth than a god. The entire painting oozes with decadence, from the posture of Bacchus, his facial expression, his offering of wine to the viewer, and his adornment in fruit.

Bacchus' fruit has become the topic of conversation for many art critics. In this particular painting Caravaggio made the fruit appear a bit unappetizing. The peaches look brown and moldy, the apples are under ripened, and the grapes are a pale brown. Some have speculated that Caravaggio was trying to represent the ephemeral nature of worldly things. It's an interesting use of fruit and stands out among this collection.

Henri Latour, Still Life with Flowers and Fruit, 1866

Pomiculture returns with a work by the French artist Henri Latour. Latour was best known for his realistic paintings of still lifes and flowers. Despite his contact with impressionist painters such as Whistler and Manet, he maintained his conservative style throughout his career.

I selected this work because it exemplifies the simplicity with which fruit can be painted and yet display beauty and elegance. The fruit looks particularly lush in this one, featuring pears, yellow peppers, apples and a pomegranate. The basket of fruit is accompanied by a pleasant vase of flowers. I'm still looking for the other half of that pear, though.

Eduoard Manet, The Lemon, 1880

Welcome back to Pomiculture. This time we feature a work from a highly famous and respected artist, Edouard Manet. His 1880 work The Lemon represents an impressionist take on the illustration of fruit. Manet painted The Lemon near the end of his life, perhaps looking for a simpler subject to settle down with.

Andrew Dasburg, Autumn Fruit, 1934

This time we pay homage Andrew Dasburg, an influential artists of his era but somehow lost through the passage of time. Luckily, Pomiculture forgets no artistic pioneer of the ripened ovary persuasion. His 1934 Autumn Fruit makes use of fruit as a device for self expression of personal issues. In this instance, the symbolism is clear. The lone fruit residing directly outside a plate full of other fruit evokes personal feelings of loneliness and inability to fit in. The lonely fruit in question does not appear to be too physically different from any of the others, the difference lies on the inside. Pomiculture is soul. Pomiculture is life.

Curated by Paul Vedros

Paul Gauguin, Still Life with Fruit, 1888

Welcome back to Pomiculture, fellow frugivores! Comparing Paul Gauguin's Still Life with Fruit with Music and Fruit, reveals the many possible creative uses artists are capable of when depicting fruit in their paintings. Paul Gauguin was noted for the paintings depicting his travels to various Caribbean islands. These escapes from European life contributed to his disillusion of consumer culture, which influenced this painting. Gauguin uses fruit to convey excessive wealth in Europe compared to the islands, which is reinforced by the presence of a teapot and onlooking girl. Gauguin essentially used fruit to express his views on global economic inequality. That's the power of Pomiculture.

Jean Chardin, Music and Fruit, 1732

Music and Fruit marks the first stop in this exhibition of Pomiculture. Many artists have historically included fruit in their works to convey ideas such as self expression, sexuality, and decadence. In this instance, the basket of fruit takes a side role, adding a texture to the main focus of the work. Chardin attempts to illustrate the vast opportunities for creativity and inspiration inherent in every instrument. The instruments are laid out, as if waiting to be picked up and used to their potential by the right hands. The basket of fruit resides silently to the left, as if watching in anticipation. The subtly of the fruit in this image makes it ideal as the introduction to the exhibition of Pomiculture.

Andre Derain, Charing Cross Bridge, 1906

Painted during his short trip to London in 1906, Andre Derain’s Charing Cross Bridge represents an example of a painting that captures the feeling of city life, while still heavily influenced by the artist’s expression. The painting was created during the peak of Fauvism, a short lived movement led by Henri Matisse and Andre Derain. The style of Fauvism went against all conventional methods of painting at the time, including abstract proportions, liberal use of color, and use of pointillism techniques.

Charing Cross Bridge features a glimpse of the south shores of the river Thames, with a brewery on the right and a train crossing a bridge in the center. Derain’s used contrasting colors to give the painting a noticeable pop. The left side of the river uses the orange-blue color scheme, the bulidings in the background are red-green, and the water on the right combines yellow and purple.

The influence of pointillism is obvious on the right half of the painting, evident by the short choppy brush strokes. This contrasts with the smoother brush strokes in the background. Despite the numerous contrasts, the painting still feels somewhat uniform, perhaps because of the indiscriminate use of color. The uniqueness of this take on urban life has made this work one of Andre Derain’s most famous.

Starry Night Over the Rhone, Vincent Van Gogh, 1888

Auguste Renoir, Dance at Le Moulin de la Galette, 1876

August Renoir's Dance at Le Moulin de la Galette depicts a cheerful scene of a typical sunday afternoon in Paris. Once a week, working class people would dress up and gather at Le Moulin de la Galette to drink, dance, socialize and eat galettes. Interestingly, the figures in the painting were not actual attendees, instead Renoir created portraits of his friends, with the occasional professional model thrown in.

Claude Monet, On the Banks of the Seine, Bennecourt, 1868

Eugene Delacroix, The Fanatics of Tangier, 1837

Painted in 1837, Eugene Delacroix’s The Fanatics of Tangier depicts a scene of temporary frenzy in the city of Tangier. Delacroix witnessed the event firsthand, watching from a hidden attic along with the French ambassador Comte de Mornay. In portraying this singular chaotic event, Delacroix manages to encapsulate the spirit of the Romantic style of art of the early 19th century.

Eugene Delacroix, Liberty Leading the People, 1830

Eugene Delacroix’s Liberty Leading the People is one of the most shocking and popular paintings of its time. Painted in 1830 and measuring 6 feet  by 10 feet, the painting manages to encapsulate the struggle for freedom waged by French working middle class. He achieves this through his use of composition, spacing, body language and color.

Delacroix makes two distinct groupings of people in this painting - the dead lying in the foreground and the gallant revolutionaries standing just above them. Reportedly, Delacroix painted the man sporting a top hat and musket as himself, showing his support for the cause.

Everything in the painting revolves around the center figure and her flag. Her importance in the painting could not be more blatant. Wielding a musket in one hand, she illustrates the call to arms against tyrannical rule. Her stepping forward with one foot over the dead shows the victory over the regime. And finally, placed directly in the center of the painting and held high above anything else, the French flag, wrinkly and beaten by the struggle, waves brilliantly. On top of all this, the light source spotlights her, while an opening in the clouds illuminates her from behind, leaving the rest of the sky in darkness. Her face, looking back to the people, beckons them to march forward. By throwing all the light at the main Liberty figure, Delacroix manages to ensure that the painting beckoned feelings of excitement, as opposed to a solemn reaction to the dead. The men holding guns and swords in the background add to the effect, working together to make this one of the most powerful and well-known paintings of all time.