An Earthly Meal by Candlelight
by Gary Hickin
I hope that the following explanation of this image may be of some interest to those interested in this genre, popular with Renaissance artists, particularly Dutch and Flemish masters. Still life in the vanitas style is full of symbolic imagery centred upon the futility and transcience of existence, although the genre sounds pretty depressing it can result in very interesting images that provide a lot of food for thought. My original ‘Earthly Meal’ still life featured a recently snuffed out candle, symbolic of the end of life, I decided to produce another version with the candle burning- this time not only to symbolise life and the passing of time but also of the Sun. The two round stones to the right, one grey and one with browns etc. are symbolic of the Moon and the Earth in an approaching total eclipse position. The broken egg symbolises birth with the dried flower representing the memory of youth. The skull , symbolic of death, is a fairly traditional element in vanitas still life, often a human one(!) but one of a bird will do just fine! The pewter tankard measure and bread is a straight forward reference to food and drink necessary for our existence. The pewter porringer (bowl), shell spoon and plate are again items symbolic of the things that are necessary for our journey through life and also our ingenuity in making them- a subtle reference to this is the prehistoric stone scraper tool located bottom left. The oak leaves blowing in from the dark exterior (the unknown that lies beyond) refer to the autumn of our existence.
Anyway, happy days!
Cheers, Gary
regards,tim
Andrew
"These places mean something and it's the job of a photographer to figure-out what the hell it is."
Robert Adams
"The camera doesn't make a bit of difference. All of them can record what you are seeing. But, you have to SEE."
Ernst Hass
My website: http://www.ephotozine.com/user/bwlchmawr-199050 http://s927.photobucket.com/home/ADC3440/index
https://www.flickr.com/photos/78898196@N05
thanks for not just sharing an unbelievable great picture with us, but also for your great explanation. I like this a lot to not just look at a picture but to get some background from the photgrapher - what he had in mind, how he made it, etc....
Your work is a class of its own. In the forum I once saw a question: "Which hotographer has its own style". I think - you are a photographer with a very own style - your pictures all have your amazing signiture. I am really fascinated by these art works.
Colors are the lack of darkness
You find more of my pictures here: https://pentaxphotogallery.com/artists/axelluther or on my web page: www.axel-luther.com
They are all adorable and reveal your background and also how much delicate effort and taste lie behind every detail!
Nezih
Cheers, Gary
Cheers, Gary
Gear Not enough!!
PPG
Flickr
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The lighting, the composition, all just superb.
Cheers, Gary
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441 posts
13 years
Bollington,
Cheshire,
UK
Gear Not enough!!
PPG
Flickr
My not so new website