So many still lifes of previous centuries feature abundance. As The Met points out, for this particular painting by Severin Roesen: “Nineteenth-century improvements in cultivation and shipping practices enabled the extravagant assortment.” It was about status, and fortune, and horticulture, and shipping, and bounty to be had, while also capturing a very particular moment in time.
The style of these massive banquet paintings goes back to 17th century Dutch masterpieces. If you’re interested, the Public Domain Review has an nice article here on pronkstilleven – “sumptuous still lifes”.
I imagine the people who stand and feast their eyes on this pronkstilleven. The image is so vivid, it’s as if the food is waiting for the people. What, then, are the people waiting for?
For the People Waiting
Who like gap-toothed melons
forget to call champagne sparkling wine
can’t choose between red, white or black grapes
like a squeeze of lemon with everything
Who think strawberries wear hats
imagine cherries as fish roe
ate too many apricots once
value melons, pineapples and berries as antioxidants
Who ate berry pancakes today at lunch with a friend
ate lunch alone
ate no lunch
didn’t feel like much anyway
Who couldn’t leave the house
cuddled a baby after her first haircut
planned a wedding
ordered flowers for a funeral
Who went to work on the bus
couldn’t watch the news
couldn’t get enough news
doom-scrolled on social media
Who made money on the markets
worried about lost opportunities
worried about an ultrasound
couldn’t afford the dentist
Who ran through the mountains
swam with seals
pilgrimaged in Spain
didn’t travel anywhere
Who put money on the lottery
slept fitfully on the couch
streamed the latest on TV
watched six pelicans fly in formation
Who felt life was passing them by
tried something new
argued with a loved one
Who hurt
Here is a drink to your life, a feast for your replenishment.
Your heart is an egg in a nest.
It is still on the table.
©elsp 2025
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