Feast for the Eyes - The Story of Food in Photography

Feast for the Eyes - The Story of Food in Photography
21 December 2018 - 6 March 2019
opening on Thursday 20 December 2018, 17:30

In December Foam will present the exhibition Feast for the Eyes - The Story of Food in Photography. This exhibition shows the rich history of food photography - not only in the visual arts, but also in commercial and scientific photography and photojournalism. From the banality of the diner-breakfast special of Stephen Shore to the allegorical still life of Laura Letinsky, from Roger Fenton's extensive nineteenth-century displays of food to the cookbooks of the sixties. The extensive exhibition, Feast for the Eyes - The Story of Food in Photography, explores the most important figures and movements in food photography.

Due to the complexity of the form, the meaning of food, and the fact that it is often available, it has become a much-photographed subject through the history of photography. Interest in both food photography and food as a subject has increased in the recent years. By sharing photos on social media platforms such as Instagram, Snapchat, Facebook and Twitter, photography has become part of the dining experience itself. Photos of food are rarely just about food, food can represent a lifestyle or a nation, hope or despair, hunger or excess.

The exhibition explores how food is represented and what its significance can be by means of three themes. For Still Life one of the most popular genres in painting is taken as the starting point. The photographs show how the artists have been inspired by the genre and how it has changed in the course of time. Around the Table looks at the ritual that takes place around food. In addition, this section also deals with cultural identity that is reflected in food. Finally, Playing with your Food shows what happens when humor, fun and irony are combined with food. In addition to the photos there will be a number of cookbooks on display. The books provide an additional visual history and supply context to the photos on the wall.


Feast for the Eyes – The Story of Food in Photography is organised by the Aperture Foundation, New York and curated by Susan Bright and Denise Wolff.

The exhibition is made possible by the Blockbusterfonds.