Dining in Art: Museum Gunzenhauser as a 'Gourmet Art Hall' - Museum Gunzenhauser Serves Up Mealtime: A Feast of Food in Art History

A new exhibition series at Museum Gunzenhauser is putting food at the centre of art history. Titled Mealtime, the project explores how depictions of food have changed from the 19th century to today. The first show, Fine Food Hall, opens on March 7 and runs until June 14, 2023, featuring over 60 works arranged like supermarket aisles.

The exhibition traces the evolution of food in art, from realistic still lifes to modern interpretations. Early works reflect colonial trade, with 19th-century Japanese ceramics, ivory pieces, and European prints influenced by Asian designs—artists like Manet and Degas incorporated these styles as global consumption grew. Later pieces shift focus, including graphic posters on Japanese food culture (1957–2016) that document everyday life.

Fine Food Hall includes pieces by Alexej von Jawlensky, Paula Modersohn-Becker, Karl Schmidt-Rottluff, and Otto Dix. Contemporary artists like Jan Kummer, Marie Lynn Speckert, Sophie Schmidt, and Osmar Osten also contribute. Visitors can take part in activities such as drawing still lifes and sharing recipes, linking art to personal experience.

Two more exhibitions will follow in 2023. The second will examine food and gender roles, while the third explores communal dining. Another upcoming show, Still Life with Vegetables by Elmgreen & Dragset at Städel Museum, blends realism and illusion to comment on sustainability and local food production.

The Mealtime series connects historical artworks with contemporary themes, showing how food reflects cultural shifts. Through interactive elements and themed displays, the exhibitions invite visitors to see food as both an artistic subject and a social experience. The first installment runs until mid-June, with further shows planned later this year.