this post was submitted on 06 Oct 2023
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Trippin' Through Time

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Tripping' Through Time

A Lemmy community for historic art pieces overhauled into modern memes.

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How would you like to be painted? (lemmy.ca)
submitted 2 years ago by JammaJammaPJ@lemmy.ca to c/trippinthroughtime@lemmy.ca
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[–] clearedtoland@lemmy.world 0 points 2 years ago (3 children)

Some art scholar out there can probably explain how this was a symbol of wealth or prosperity…but boy it didn’t age well.

[–] AFKBRBChocolate@lemmy.world 1 points 2 years ago (2 children)

From the link that @paraphrand@lemmy.world posted:

In Cuyp’s depiction the suppression of carnal desires is represented by the enraged cat, the traditional symbol of lust, being tempted yet restrained from the object of its desire – the fish. The courting couple of the background serves to underline the message. The distant castle can be linked to the idea of the palais d’amour which featured in late-medieval imagery from the Garden of Love a theme which had remained popular well into the seventeenth century.

[–] Rodeo@lemmy.ca 0 points 2 years ago (1 children)

This really goes to show you can read any meaning you like into art.

See it's actually a depiction of class inequality, where the kings are represented by the fat petulant child who is withholding sustenance, wealth, and the means of production (represented by the fish) from the angry proletariat, represented by the cat.

Id like to hear Cuyp's own interpretation, because I think most art criticism is simply people ascribing their own meaning, like I just did.

[–] funkless_eck@sh.itjust.works 1 points 2 years ago

in 300 years people will wonder why owning a stuffed shark, or pink cat ear headphones, or the black/orange stripes and font of a certain websites logo, was a sign of lust to us today.

Or, most people can interpret the semiotics of "the worst guy you know" face, which will become as unreadable as the above imagine in maybe even 20 years.