WELLESLEY, MASS.- The Davis Museum at Wellesley College presents Feast Your Eyes, a delightful exhibition exploring the art and culture of food. Bringing together more than 30 paintings, prints, photographs, drawings and dinnerware from the 17th through the 21st century, the exhibition will consider ways in which representation of food reflect changing tastes – both visual and victual. On view September 17 – December 21, Feast Your Eyes is free and open to the general public. An opening reception will be held Wednesday, September 17, 5:30-7:00 p.m.

Artfully photographing a meal is not only a recent foodie fad, but taps a long history of feast and famine imagery. Connecting contemporary interest in stylized cuisine with the rich tradition of still life in art, this exhibition charts changing fashions in consumption through works of art from the Davis collections. Representations of food have influenced and imitated beliefs about gastronomy in different eras, serving up important reminders that art is a vital form of dietary persuasion.

“As a crucial part of everyday life, food has been a frequent subject of artistic interest, from the long
still life tradition to contemporary fascination with cellphone photographs of meals,” say exhibition curator Mazie Harris, 2013-2014 Linda Wyatt Gruber ’66 Curatorial Fellow in Photography, “This exhibition provides a space to consider varied ideas about consumption. Whether capturing abundance or scarcity, representations of food are a reminder of the power of art as sustenance and stimulation.”

Featuring artists from around the globe, including Mark Chagall, Walker Evans, Nan Goldin, Janet Fish, John F. Francis, Fernand Léger, Claus Oldenburg, Charlotte Park, Maurice de Vlaminck, Andy Warhol, and Edward Weston, among others, Feast Your Eyes encourages viewers to look at the history of food and art through a new lens and with fresh eyes.