Still Life Symbolism

Still Life Symbolism (The use of objects within a still life painting that have a special meaning.)

The still life painting has allowed artists the ability to send extra messages, however, many of the meanings are lost to most people today. Allegory- a way of communicating a message via symbols, and symbolic figures.

When still life painting began, it started with flowers or kitchen items laid out on a table (Fruit or Flower pieces, then breakfast pieces, then banquet pieces). Paintings of elaborate banquets usually refer to the culture of luxury, but in contemporary circles, it can refer to the gluttony of modern times. 

After the ostentatious banquet pieces became popular, we moved into Vanitas. These are paintings with still life symbolism with a moral message.  They remind the viewer of death, the fragility of human life, and the brevity of our existence (symbols like a skull, timepiece, snuffed out candle to represent the passage of time). Some common symbols :

Harvested foods- the fruits of human agriculture and labor, human-kinds ingenuity and perseverance.

Fresh food- signifies abundance, riches, and the bounty of the upper class.

Decaying food- serves to show us our own mortality and eventual death.

Butterfly is representative of the soul.  It also represents the resurrection of Christ.  

White triangle of cloth- with its point upwards, is a sign of the Holy Spirit or the Trinity all through Christian still life symbolism.

Downward pointing triangle- femininity, representative of female anatomy and the womb. It also symbolizes mother earth.

Lemons (in earlier times) attractive yet, sour and bitter, and in this symbolizes the deceptive allure or attraction of earthly beauty.

Rose- love, Lily- purity, Sunflower- devotion, Ivy- evergreen means eternity

Shells, in a religious work, represent pilgrimages, or saints. In contemporary works, they symbolize sensuality and the pleasures of the flesh. 

The parrot, the birds, the cat, and the monkey (Renaissance era)– personify specifically human failings.  Monkey represents chaos. Mouse- very fertile, lechery and destruction. Cat represented lust (Medieval times). In later times, a cat is a peaceful and enjoyable companion. For centuries cats are considered mysterious, beautiful, and exotic. 

Skulls or bones, when in the painting, symbolize mortality.  The skull also represents inner contemplation, and eternity.

Books: learning or of transmitting knowledge. also warn of the futility of worldy pursuits.

The candle- the passing of time, faith in God (when its burning), death (when extinguished), loss of virginity, light in the darkness of a lonely individual, or the light of Christ, purification or cleansing.

 
Mirror- stands for truth or vanity. Viewer’s attempt to find the truth, or lead to simple vanity.


Apple- love, knowledge, wisdom, joy, and death.  In religious works it usually means temptation, and original sin.  The apple is also associated with a woman’s anatomy and her sexuality.