''The Ricotta Eaters'' is a c.1585 oil on canvas painting by
Vincenzo Campi
Vincenzo Campi (; c.1530/1535–1591) was a 16th-century Italian painter working in Cremona during the Late Renaissance. Campi is best known as one of the first northern Italian artists to work in the Flemish style of realist genre painting.
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, showing four figures eating a round ricotta. The artist himself entitled it ''Buffonaria'', which links its four figures to
Commedia dell'arte
(; ; ) was an early form of professional theatre, originating from Italian theatre, that was popular throughout Europe between the 16th and 18th centuries. It was formerly called Italian comedy in English and is also known as , , and . Charact ...
characters, and depicted himself as Pantalone, wearing red costume. In 1875, the work was presented by Jacques Bernard to the Museum of Fine Arts of Lyon, where it is currently displayed.
Symbolism
The ricotta placed on the tray appears to form an image of the skull, symbolizing