Zócalo Public Square

Photographers have turned their lenses on food since the invention of their art. Early images captured simple, soft arrangements that showcased seasonal bounties — fruits and vegetables in vases and bowls, like still-life paintings. Photographed still lives — whether elaborate or bare — evoked not only taste and appetite, but the experience of a meal, the process, the drama, the company. Shots of markets captured commerce and abundance. Decades later, technological and aesthetic advances transformed the food photograph into its own art that set off all the senses. As the Getty opens its exhibit, "Tasteful Pictures,” featuring food photographs from the Getty collection, Zócalo invites a panel of experts — including KCRW’s Evan Kleiman, Artbites’ Maite Gomez-Rejón, photographer Charlie Grosso, and Gastronomica founding editor Darra Goldstein — to explore the origins of food photography and why we like to look at what we can’t eat.