Life Without Art
is like Dinner
Without Wine –
Why Bother
By Linda Cordair
A
s premier California wineries
continue to make a fine art
of capturing the fruit of
the vine’s nuanced and
delectable flavors, perhaps
it was inevitable that a singular
artist would eventually emerge, one
whose skills would be a perfect
pairing with the subject at hand.
Thomas Arvid, represented by Quent
Cordair Fine Art in Napa, has been
credited with launching an art trend
that revolves almost completely
around the product that is the
heart and soul of the wine country.
Delighting wine and art connoisseurs
alike, Arvid’s mouthwatering,
over-size still lifes feature wine
and the rituals surrounding wine,
the intricate details of which are
brought to life with a mastery of
light, depth and reflection - and
have garnered worldwide attention
and acclaim.
Doug Shafer, of Shafer Family
Vineyards, likens Arvid’s skill to that
of the best Napa winemakers. “Arvid’s
style is big and bold, with enough
selected detail and softness to create
a sense of balance ... this blend of
elements is precisely what winemakers
hope to bring to their top vintages.”
n
ntia in ri
ha i r a
Cellars, Far Niente and Diamond Creek
Winery collect Arvid’s work, with USA
Today declaring in 2000: “What the
Dutch masters did for clusters of
fruit, Arvid is doing for the fruit
of the vine.”
Winding Down by
Thomas Arvid
148
The power of Arvid’s work lies in
his unique ability to visualize and
evoke a pleasure-infused atmosphere
beyond the frame, to suggest a story
of sensuous enjoyment and the good
life. Passionate about art and wine
himself - he’s an ardent collector of
both - Arvid strives to capture, on
each canvas, the pleasure of life well
lived, while insisting that the wine
itself, as a subject, should remain
approachable. As such, his paintings
are an embodiment of the more
casual and natural way that
Americans have come to enjoy wine
today, as a natural and expected
element of dining and entertaining.
Raised in a blue-collar family just
outside of Detroit - his father was