Warhol’s Campbell Soup cans are a bastion of Pop Art, yet when the artist first silk-screened the everyday for his 1962 exhibition at the Ferus Gallery, Campbell’s Soup Cans, it sent shockwaves through the art world. A mass-produced product elevated to the status of art abruptly called into question the very nature of artistic representation. To cultural critic Jean Baudrillard, Warhol’s soup cans ‘releases us from the need to decide between beautiful and ugly, between real and unreal, between transcendence and immanence’.
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The Last Supper is a series of thirteen large screen prints created by the artist in 1999. In the series, Hirst conflates the language of religion, traditional British foods and pharmaceutical drugs to challenge the common faith people have in medicine. Hirst’s transfixion with medicine led to a full-scale installation of a pharmacy in 1992 at the Cohen Gallery. This interest had originated from childhood memories of going to the chemist with his mother, and finding it strange that she had faith in medicine, but none in art: “I was having difficulty convincing the people around me that it was worth believing in. And then I noticed that they were believing in medicine in exactly the same way that I wanted them to believe in art”. For Hirst, this unshakeable belief in modern medicine and the primacy of science is comparable to religion, two opposite poles of the same dogma. This concern is continued on in the biblical allusion of The Last Supper, which poses ‘the question of whether pharmaceuticals.. May have become not only the salvation in which we put our faith, but our daily bread’. (Press release, National Gallery of Art). These distinct screen prints are titled after traditional British foods: Beans and Chips, Chicken, Corned Beef, Cornish Pasty, Dumpling, Liver, Bacon and Onions, Meatballs, Mushroom, Omelette, Salad, Sandwich, Sausages and Steak & Kidney.
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Yayoi Kusama's iconic pumpkins have become an integral part of contemporary art and popular culture, catapulting her into the ranks of the world's most valuable living female artists. Kusama's fascination with pumpkins dates back to her childhood in pre-war Japan, where her family operated a plant nursery specialising in kabocha squash. Over the years, her obsession with pumpkins only intensified. Kusama's trademark dotted pumpkins have transcended traditional canvases and can now be found adorning works on paper, small handheld figurines, monumental sculptures, and within her immersive infinity room installations. Often dubbed the "obsessional artist" from Japan, Kusama has emerged as a leading figure in the avant-garde art movement, renowned for her relentless incorporation of polka dots and her iconic pumpkin motif.
Her affinity for pumpkins has deep roots in her upbringing, symbolising not only her childhood but also themes of fertility and vitality. Kusama finds a sense of "poetic peace" in the humble pumpkin, and this sentiment has been a driving force behind her artistic exploration of the subject. Her artistic expression with pumpkins spans various mediums, from two-dimensional works to three-dimensional sculptures, and even immersive room installations, captivating audiences worldwide.
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Unlike many other works by Banksy, Donuts has only appeared for commercial sale and not as a street piece. First appearing as a canvas in 2009 in pink, two print releases were created as a version in brown known as Donuts (Chocolate) and a pink sister print known as Donuts (Strawberry). Both editions appeared as part of a series of 299 signed prints in each colourway - the number being a reference to Krispy Kreme Doughnuts’ financial troubles in 2007, when it closed 299 stores. Donuts shows a food van, much like that used in street food markets across the world, with a giant, oversized donut on top. Escorting the precious cargo is a motorcade of smartly dressed American police officers looking dour and serious. The work is loaded with meaning and humour. The association of the American police and donuts is satirical and the artwork calls into question the motives and value of the police themselves through their protection of the sweet treat. Protect and serve me another donut, maybe? Likewise, the farcical nature of the composition also makes one wonder about how resources and time are used by the police and the self-serving nature of those in power.
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Lucky Strike is a portfolio of five silkscreen prints executed by the artist in 1987. Commissioned by the eponymous American tobacco company for advertisements, the series shows Haring’s energetic and playful style alongside his commercial acumen. The artist produced nine silkscreens, of which the present five were chosen by the company. A tenth work was created but distributed amongst Haring’s friends, a joke on tobacco’s dangers; a smoking skeleton which Haring noted in his diary the executives did not appreciate. The portfolio perfectly amalgamates the Lucky Strike brand with Haring’s immediately familiar visual lexicon - bracketed lines, radiant halos and matchstick men.
In the Lucky Strike portfolio Haring gives an even greater legacy to a household name. It is reminiscent of Warhol’s Ads series, wherein Warhol produced screenprint advertisements for iconic brands such as Disney, Chanel and Volkswagen. Haring was inspired by his friend and fellow artist, and much like Warhol, recognised the enormous potential of his work for a mass audience.
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Food art encapsulates both the routines of daily life and the exceptional moments of celebration and has the remarkable ability to encapsulate a delicious present or evoke the memories of a consumed past. In essence, it serves as a beautiful means of celebrating life and togetherness while simultaneously prompting contemplation of societal and cultural determinism.