Wine and art have always been hand in hand throughout history. At Jean Leon, we have always given great importance to art and culture. This is embodied in the history of our winery, but above all in our icon wine, Vinya La Scala Cabernet Sauvignon Gran Reserva. Each vintage of this Gran Reserva is dressed with a different label, illustrated by a well-known artist. In such a way, we manage to bring small works of art into every home.
In our case, it is the bottles of wine that have artworks on their labels, but in this article, we wanted to talk about those where the main figure is wine. Obviously, there are many artists who represent the world of wine in their paintings, but we are going to highlight 5 particularly important works in the history of art.
The triumph of Bacchus
This work of art, painted by the famous artist Velázquez between 1628 and 1629, is an oil on canvas, which is currently displayed in the Prado Museum.
In this painting, Velázquez introduces a new way of representing the mythological world, mixing it with very realistic, everyday scenes. As it can be seen, the painting is divided in two. On the left, the mythological part, with the god Bacchus, the god of wine, as the main character, and on the right, we can find the town characters, who provide the everyday counterpoint.
The grape harvest or Autumn
This painting, painted by Goya in 1786, is an oil on canvas, and it is exhibited in the Prado Museum.
It should be noted that autumn is considered as the season of the god Bacchus, the god of wine. In this painting, the artist wanted to depict a traditional scene in which the peasants carry out the process of the grape harvest (the gathering of the grapes) for the subsequent production of wine.
Rowers’ lunch
This oil on canvas, painted by Renoir in 1881, is currently on display at the Phillips Collection Museum in Washington D.C.
The French artist is one of the painters who most frequently depicted wine in his paintings. Such is the case of this artwork, which is a hymn to the joie de vivre, where wine is placed as the perfect accompaniment to a meal.
Card players
This piece of art, painted by the Post-Impressionist painter Paul Cézanne between 1890 and 1895, is an oil on canvas, which is exhibited in the Musée d’Orsay in Paris.
Cézanne is another artist who gives importance to wine in his paintings. In this case, he portrays an everyday scene of two men playing cards while drinking wine, with a bottle in the center of the scene.
Bouteille de vin
This work of art, created by Pablo Picasso in 1922, is an engraving, exhibited in the art room of the Vivanco Museum of Wine Culture, in Briones (La Rioja).
This engraving was made using the “pochoir” technique (hand-coloured engraving with gouache). It depicts a cubist still life with a bunch of grapes, a bottle of wine and a glass on a table.
These are just 5 famous works that represent the world of wine in their paintings, but there are many more artists who have wanted to highlight something as closely linked to society as wine. Because wine has always been, is, and will always be part of our lives.
