 |
FELCHLIN'S CHOCOLATE WHORLED
Oil on canvas, 48 x 36 inches, 1990
(Private collection, Schwyz, Switzerland)
|
|
Felchlin's Chocolate Whorled was commissioned by a chocolate manufacturer in Switzerland. According to the wishes of the owner, the painting was to be an imaginary land of plenty, a kind of chocolate Cockaigne. To complete the task, the artist researched not only the ways in which chocolate is actually made, but also information about Swiss history, customs, and geography. One of the key concepts of the composition was to incorporate in it the map of Switzerland, but to make it inconspicuous: as can be seen, the canyon around the central lake is shaped like such a map. Besides the map, a careful viewer will find in the picture Swiss loggers, Alpine horn players, whip crackers (an old Swiss custom and a yearly competition in the region), a St. Bernard dog, a Swiss chalet, and even William Tell and his son with a box of chocolates, instead of an apple, on his head. The two central mountains in the background are relatively realistic renditions of the two mountains in the little town of Schwyz. Everything in the imaginary town represented in the painting is made of chocolate or relates to the production of chocolate and its various derivatives--cocoa powder, chocolate cream filling, chocolate mousse, and chocolate nougat. There are cocoa trees and cocoa beans being harvested, chocolate logs, boxes with chocolates (a lot of them!), whipped cream with melba toasts and cherries, chocolate dispensers with the names of famous chocolate manufacturers (in the middle of the lake), lollipops, and candy. In addition to these, some personal elements from the lives of the owners are also included (interest in music, photography, and art), as well as the flag of the European Union and a balloon with the Swiss shield. Two details may be of interest to art lovers. A little girl rolling a hoop with a stick is a "tribute" to Georgio de Chirico, in whose work, The Mystery and Melancholy of a Street, she appears, while the couple having a picnic on the grass in the foreground may take the viewers back to Manet's famous painting Luncheon on the Grass (no nudity here!). The painting was used by Max Felchlin's chocolate firm as an advertisement for his chocolatiers' school (Condirama) and the firm's extensive line of chocolate products. The pictures shown below were scanned from the advertising brochure and not only show better colors, but also reveal details impossible to see in the reproduction of the entire painting.
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |