More art work that makes me think of Thanksgiving!

"The Cook" (La cuisinière), Félix Vallotton, 1892. Do cast-iron stoves make you think of Thanksgiving?

“Assorted Food on a Stove," Claes Oldenburg

Claes Oldenburg with his non-edible sculpture, 1962.

“Dinner for Threshers,” Grant Wood

Detail of a farmhouse kitchen from  “Dinner for Threshers.” 1934.

Paul Cézanne, "The Kitchen Table." Fall fruits make me think of the fall holiday.

“Bottles and Glasses” (Bouteilles et verres), Pablo Picasso, 1912.
We usually drink wine with our turkey dinner. Picasso offered a new look for bottles!

Carl Larsson, “Christmas Dinner.” 1904.  
OK, it’s very like a Thanksgiving buffet for a big family! I love the silver drinking cups.

These artists didn’t have Thanksgiving in mind, but when I think about food and drink, and about families and friends gathering to share a meal at beautifully set tables,  or when I think about cooking old favorites in old-time kitchens, I think of images like these. Collectively, I think we Americans share an idealized impression of Thanksgiving with a set menu and a group of close friends and family enjoying the food. And I think many people continue to strive to create such an ideal for their group. 

A few years ago, the wonderful blogger Jama, of Jama’s Alphabet Soup, shared a children’s book about the holiday. She featured this particularly idealized image of a long-ago Thanksgiving dinner. (Jill McElmurry, Sharing the Bread: An Old-Fashioned Thanksgiving Story, by Pat Zietlow Miller, 2015)