They say a picture is worth a thousand words, but this painting is worth much more than that.
Noah Verrier, a popular contemporary artist known for his meticulously rendered paintings of everyday foods (from McDonald’s meals and Chick-fil-A to roadside snacks), celebrated one of Cincinnati’s most beloved culinary icons: Skyline Chili.
And you can own a piece of the art, thanks to Eisele Gallery in Hyde Park, which recruited Verrier for the piece.
The painting depicts the chain’s signature dish, a 3-way, with a fountain drink, a fork and some classic oyster characters, all accompanied by a vase of vibrant orange tulips.
How the painting came to be
AJ Gianopolous, Eisele Gallery director of historical art, was sitting at a frame shop when he saw a small painting of a classic Twinkie snack cake.
He said he immediately recognized the style as Verrier’s work, having seen his fast food-themed art go viral during the COVID-19 pandemic (he even went on to purchase a few pieces of his own).
So, around August/September last year, Gianopolous decided to reach out to Verrier and see if he would consign a piece with the gallery, something Verrier doesn’t typically do.
“I just do everything self-represented,” Verrier said. “Then we kind of worked out a deal where we said it’d be really great to do a Cincinnati-themed painting, so that’s how it came to be.”
Gianopolous alluded that deciding on a Skyline Chili-themed painting was an easy choice to make, especially since “everybody loves Skyline.”
“This painting is more than just brand recognition,” Gianopolous shared. “Every time I look at it, I think about the first time I had Skyline and the comfort that a Skyline meal brings, and something like that is very hard to convey across a painting and he does it wonderfully.”
The Tallahassee, Florida-based artist said it took “a couple days” to compose the oil painting of the familiar Skyline Chili meal.
Gianopolous said the painting was completed in January, adding that the gallery has “had it for a couple weeks now.”
And although the Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden has a vibrant tulip garden and one of the best flower festivals in the country, that didn’t lead to Verrier’s decision to add tulips to the painting. Rather, Verrier said, adding a floral arrangement to his work is “nothing new,” noting that many still-life painters have similar compositions.
“I like the idea, too, that it just looks like maybe you would sit down at a table and that’s what you’re eating. You’d have some flowers on the table. It’s an aesthetic, too,” he said.
It also wasn’t the first Skyline Chili painting he’s made. The first came in September 2023, depicting a 3-way dish with a drink alongside a vase of red tulips.
Despite Verrier being in Florida, he’s had the Cincinnati delicacy plenty of times (even the frozen versions).
“I loved it. I mean, I’m a fan,” he said. “When I was really young, my best friend was always like, ‘Oh, my mom makes Cincinnati chili.’ I don’t know when Skyline came about, but I knew about Cincinnati chili since I was a kid.”
You could own the Skyline Chili-inspired oil painting
Art collectors have the chance to own Verrier’s Skyline Chili painting, but it comes with a high price tag. The original painting is currently available for acquisition through Eisele Gallery for $25,000, per its website.
The gallery is also releasing a “strictly limited edition” of 50 prints, which are available exclusively through Eisele Gallery. The prints cannot be purchased through the artist’s website or secondary marketplaces such as eBay, Artsy or Etsy.
Once all 50 prints have sold out, the edition will permanently close and “no additional prints will ever be produced,” the gallery’s website states. The 18-by-24-inch prints are listed for $700.
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: $25K painting of Skyline Chili goes up for sale at art gallery
Reporting by Kaycee Sloan, Cincinnati Enquirer / Cincinnati Enquirer
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
