Wednesday 19 June 2019

XENIUM

A xenium (ksé-ni-um) is a gift or offering given to a stranger (Greek: xénos), which in its native Ancient Greece would once have been a lavish feast or a refreshing spread of food and fruit. In the 19th century art world, however, xenium came to refer to a still-life painting depicting something like an extravagant display of food or a bowl of fruit.

This is a xenium still life by Cornelis de Heem (8 April 1631 [baptised] – 17 May 1695 [buried]) who was a still-life painter associated with both Flemish Baroque and Dutch Golden Age painting. He was a member of a large family of still-life specialists, of which his father, Jan Davidszoon de Heem (1606–1684), was the most significant.

This post is part of the Wordless Wednesday meme,
and also part of the ABC Wednesday meme.

4 comments:

  1. Well! Another new word for me from the "x" photos!
    Thanks for sharing at https://image-in-ing.blogspot.com/2019/06/classical-art.html

    ReplyDelete
  2. Fine photo of this luscious looking painting.

    ReplyDelete
  3. I did not know this word … thanks for the education ;-0)

    Have a heartwarming en splendid ABC-Wednes-day / -week
    M e l o d y (team ABC-W)
    https://melodyk.nl/24-x

    ReplyDelete

I love to hear from you, so please comment. I appreciate constructive criticism as it improves my skills as an amateur photographer.