Labouring over Fruit

As I write this, I am sipping from a fresh coconut, not from Union City, NJ, but from the tree a few feet away from me! I am finally at one of my favorite places in the world —a volcanic lake in El Salvador— where I can eat fresh papaya and guayabas. While I’m sipping from this coconut, I can’t help but think of Alonsa Guevara‘s sensuous fruit paintings.

Last week I had the chance to visit Guevara’s studio, which she shares with boyfriend, and fellow artist James Raczkowski. Although I had been to the New York Academy of Art’s open studios, when she was a student there, I first really became aware of her work through Verni.io: a fantastic and original online platform that showcases artists’ work that’s currently in their studio.

In person, her textured paintings, most likely inspired by her native Chile, are even more wonderful than on the website. I felt transported to a tropical place as I saw the round slices of avocado, orange, lemon, guava, and fictional fruit hanging on her studio wall:

Guevara is fascinated by female archetypes and objects that provoke desire, and well, let’s face it, fruit is sexy.

Let’s see below how other artists have given fruit a new perspective:

 

 

 

Which ones are your favorites?