Desire and Abundance

desire

1. to long or hope for; to crave; to wish for

2. an impulse towards that which promises enjoyment, satisfaction, or satiation

abundance

1. great quantity; plentifulness; wealth

2. lavish display or supply of valuable material possessions or resources

These two definitions are at the back of the information pamphlet for the Desire and Abundance: American Culture and the Still Life exhibit at the Memorial Art Gallery (MAG). I was surprised when I first walked into the gallery and found the exhibit right there at the front. It features an eclectic collection of still life paintings from the 1800s to today by various artists in different mediums from the MAG’s collection.

I went on a Thursday afternoon in late February, and most people that I saw paid little attention to the exhibit and walked right past, presumably to get to the Frontiers of Impressionism: Paintings from the Worcester Art Museum exhibit further in the gallery before it went down on March 1st. The Desire and Abundance exhibition opened back in December, so there’s a chance that they had just already seen the exhibit. I did get the impression that it was easy to walk past, though. Most of the artwork was crammed onto one wall facing the gallery entrance, with the information pamphlet off to the side so you could figure out which painting was which.

There were two pieces of artwork that stood out to me and stayed with me for a while. Neither of these pieces are traditional still lifes, although there were plenty of those. Lots of beautiful paintings of fruits and tableware and a skull. These items, at certain times in history, were representations of wealth. One of the ones that caught my attention was just titled Cherries 1875-1899 by an American artist. It was silk embroidery on linen of a basket of cherries on its side with the cherries spilling out. The embroidery is shiny and the cherries are still red, and it drew my attention as soon as I saw it. The description of the piece talks about the cherry as a symbol of agricultural abundance. Now it’s as simple as a short trip to the grocery store to obtain them.

The end of the description reads ‘“American as apple pie” - you’ve probably come across this expression. What food do you associate with the United States?’ I have to admit that the first food that comes to mind when I think of the U.S. is the hamburger. Particularly a hamburger from a fast food restaurant. In fact a fruit is probably the second to last food item I’d associate with the United States, right after a vegetable.

The other piece that called my attention was titled Care-taken by Genesis Belanger, 2025. It’s made out of porcelain, plywood, wood veneer, and linoleum. It depicts an open medicine cabinet full of things one would normally find in there, like pills and medicine bottles, along with other items like an apple core. Probably related to the saying ‘an apple a day keeps the doctor away.’ It’s interesting to me how everyday items can be given the still life treatment and made into art. It’s also interesting how medicine can be thought of as an American Value. Do the pills in the art piece, and the concept of being able to take care of your health, represent a desire or an abundance? Maybe both.

The Desire and Abundance exhibit will be on display through January of 2027.