Bodegones

Bodegones are a Spanish and Latin American tradition of still-life painting that depict pantry or kitchen scenes, focusing on objects such as bread, fruit and vegetables, wine and bottles, glassware, ceramics, and metal utensils arranged on a table or shelf. The term comes from bodega, meaning pantry or storeroom. While still lifes appear in many European traditions, the bodegón developed as a distinct genre in 17th-century Spain during the Golden Age and later influenced colonial Latin American painting.

Characteristics of bodegones include an emphasis on ordinary, everyday objects rather than mythological or aristocratic subjects. Compositions often stress the tactile qualities of materials—glass, metal, ceramic, fruit—and use light and shadow to create depth. Some works incorporate vanitas or moralizing undertones, reminding viewers of transience and mortality. The scale is usually modest, and the lighting often resembles that of a still life set within a dim or intimate interior.

Notable practitioners include Juan van der Hamen y Leal, who produced refined bodegones with glassware and fruit; Juan Sánchez Cotán, renowned for austere, almost architectural arrangements of vegetables and fruit on ledges set against dark backgrounds; and Francisco de Zurbarán, who also explored fruit and simple vessels in this genre. These painters helped define the Latin American and Spanish approach to still life, with an emphasis on verisimilitude and material texture.

Legacy: Bodegones contributed to the development of realistic still-life painting in Spain and the Spanish-speaking world, influencing later artists and maintaining a distinct genre within the broader tradition of nature morte and genre painting.