10 Paintings That Capture Coffee’s Cultural Impact

The rich aroma, the deep, bittersweet taste, the warmth that lingers—coffee is more than just a drink; it’s an experience. Across cultures and centuries, this humble beverage has fueled conversations, creativity, and daily rituals. Artists, too, have been captivated by its presence, fueled by its stimulating properties, and captured moments of solitude, social gatherings, and the simple pleasure of a freshly brewed cup.

A Rich History

From its roots in Ethiopia to the lively cafés of 18th-century Venice to the sleek branding of modern supermarket shelves, coffee has long been more than just a drink—it is a ritual, a social currency, and a symbol of globalization. As coffee’s history unfolded—from its origins in Africa since remote times to its rise in European cafés—it became a subject worthy of art itself. Some scholars believe that early references to coffee can be found in the Bible and The Odyssey. However, the first confirmed records of coffee in the Arabian Peninsula occurred through Yemen in the 15th century and subsequently travelled West at the beginning of the 17th century.

By the mid-18th century, European colonies dominated the global coffee trade, relying on plantations—often worked by enslaved laborers—to meet growing consumer demand.

Speaking of coffee, grab your cup of joe and enjoy 10 paintings that celebrate coffee in all its richness.

1. Nicolas Lancret, A Lady in the Garden Having Coffee with Children

One of Nicolas Lancret’s (1690–1743) most ambitious works, A Lady in a Garden Taking Coffee with Some Children, is often considered his masterpiece. Exhibited at the Salon of 1742, the painting presents a pastoral idyll with figures dressed in contemporary aristocratic fashion.

A woman, likely the mother, offers a spoonful of coffee to a young child. Meanwhile, a man, presumably the father, holds a tray for a servant pouring from a silver coffee pot. The scene radiates informality, emphasized by a doll lying on the ground and a dog rooting among hollyhocks. Though traditionally titled The Cup of Chocolate, the painting highlights the growing European fascination with coffee as a symbol of refinement and leisure.

2. Carl Spitzweg, Turks in a Coffee House

Carl Spitzweg’s (1808–1885) Turks in a Coffee House takes us to a Middle Eastern setting, where coffeehouses were not just places to drink but centers of intellectual exchange. Spitzweg, a German painter, was fascinated by Oriental themes, despite never traveling to the eastern Mediterranean himself. He encountered elements of Ottoman culture during his visits to the World Exhibition in 1851 and incorporated these influences into his art.

The painting reflects the long history of coffee culture in the Ottoman Empire, where coffeehouses thrived since the 16th century. Coffee was introduced to Istanbul by 1539 and soon became a staple of social life throughout the city and even in small towns in Anatolia. Spitzweg’s depiction of Turkish men enjoying their coffee captures both the exoticism with which Europeans viewed the East and coffee’s role in Ottoman society.

3. Ludwig Passini, Artist in Caffè Greco in Rome

By the 19th century, in Europe, coffeehouses became essential spaces for artists, writers, and intellectuals. Nowhere was this more evident than in Rome’s Caffè Greco, famously depicted in Ludwig Passini’s (1832–1903) Artist in Caffè Greco in Rome. Established in 1760, for the next two centuries, Caffè Greco, situated near the Spanish Steps, became a central meeting place for artists. The café’s location near the French Academy at the Villa Medici made it particularly popular among artists, while its surrounding hotels, trattorias, and shops catered to the international clientele that flocked to the area.

Beyond its role as a haven for artistic and political discourse, the Caffè Greco also offered more indulgent pleasures. One patron in 1816 noted that it was the only place where one could smoke tobacco freely, unlike other cafés where it was either prohibited or restricted to a single table. It was also famous for its coffee, which some claimed could quickly cure a hangover. Passini’s painting immortalizes this vibrant intellectual and bohemian atmosphere, capturing a moment in a space that continues to serve coffee and conversation to this day.

4. Edward Hopper, Automat

Sometimes a cup of coffee is not to be shared, but rather to be enjoyed in solitude, evident in Edward Hopper’s (1882–1967) Automat. A lone woman, lost in thought, sits with her coffee in a dimly lit, impersonal urban space. The automat—a fast-food restaurant serving food and drink via vending machines—was a staple of early 20th-century city life, offering convenience but also a sense of detachment.

Hopper masterfully captures the isolating yet oddly comforting nature of late-night café visits, where the presence of coffee is both a companion and a silent witness to contemplation. The reflection of repetitive light fixtures in the dark window enhances the sense of loneliness. The ambiguity of her circumstances adds to the painting’s emotional depth, making it a striking depiction of urban solitude.

Ironically, the painting was first exhibited on Valentine’s Day in 1927, at the opening of Hopper’s second solo show at the Rehn Galleries in New York City.

5. Paul Cézanne, Woman with a Coffeepot

In Paul Cézanne’s (1839–1906) Woman with a Coffeepot, the woman, possibly an employee of Cézanne’s family home near Aix-en-Provence is rendered with a static, rigid posture and expressionless face to create an emotional distance, making her more of an object within the composition than a subject. Rather than offering a warm depiction of domestic life, Cézanne’s treatment is cold and analytical, reducing the woman, the cup, and the coffeepot to simplified geometric forms.

The tilted table, depicted at a higher angle than the objects on it, hints at the Cubist experiments that were to come. The background, with its moulded wooden panels and slightly off-center flowery wallpaper, enhances the painting’s structural tension. Cézanne once wrote about his desire to “treat nature through cylinders, spheres, and cones,” and here he applies that philosophy to the human figure. The thick application of paint imbues the objects with a tangible materiality—the milky white cup, the silver-grey spoon, the metallic sheen of the coffeepot—but none of it invites intimacy or warmth. The woman is part of the stillness, as unfeeling as the objects surrounding her.

You can’t help but wonder, was the woman even able to indulge in the milky goodness?

6. Henri Matisse, Laurette with a Cup of Coffee

Henri Matisse’s (1869–1954) Laurette with a Cup of Coffee captures an intimate, contemplative moment with one of his favorite models. Laying in a loose, relaxed posture, Laurette is lost in thought, with a full cup of coffee by her head. Unlike the vibrant, decorative compositions of Matisse’s earlier years, this work embraces a more muted palette of blacks, whites, and soft earth tones, reflecting the subdued mood of wartime Europe.

Throughout history, coffee has been a staple of both social gatherings and solitary reflection, and here, Matisse leans into its more introspective side. The loose brushwork and simplified forms emphasize the feeling of stillness, making Laurette with a Cup of Coffee not just a portrait, but a meditation on the quiet comfort of an everyday indulgence.

7. George W. Twibill Jr., The Family of John Q. Aymar

Set in the richly furnished parlor of John Q. Aymar’s home on Greenwich Street in New York, this 19th-century painting presents coffee as a symbol of both wealth and domestic tradition. The window reveals the masts of ships docked on the Hudson River, a nod to Aymar’s success as an importer of rum and coffee from the West Indies. More strikingly, his commercial prosperity is reflected in the opulent décor: a marble-top center table adorned with fruit, a coffee pot, and a paisley shawl, a gilded mirror atop a pier table, and a sideboard, all of which were donated to the museum along with the painting.

Aymar’s wife, Elizabeth, and their two daughters, Mary and Elizabeth, complete this tableau of refinement and familial harmony. Initially attributed to Samuel F. B. Morse, the painting has since been reassigned to George Twibill, a meticulous artist known for his charming and precise interiors. More than just a portrait, this painting serves as a document of life in New York in the 1830s, illustrating how coffee was woven into the rituals of affluence and domesticity.

8. Juan Gris, Breakfast

When you’re in a rush, this image is what your morning can look like—a total mess.

This papier collé —a collage of pasted papers—titled Breakfast by Spanish Cubist artist Juan Gris (1887–1927) presents a breakfast table as a vertiginous collision of perspectives and methods of representation. Gris used two types of mechanically printed, imitation wood-grain paper to evoke the table’s surface and legs, while real wallpaper suggests the background wall. These printed sheets, in addition to vibrant blue and white papers and wedges of painted canvas, fit together in a tightly interlocking structure.

On these fragments, Gris drew objects seen from different angles, including cups and saucers, an eggcup and spoon, and a coffeepot. He also included a printed packaging label and a newspaper clipping. Bearing the word “GRIS,” it serves as a kind of signature.

9. Pietro Longhi, Portrait of a Venetian Family with a Manservant Serving Coffee

Pietro Longhi’s (1701–1785) Portrait of a Venetian Family with a Manservant Serving Coffee offers an intimate look at the daily rituals of the Venetian elite. Unlike many of Longhi’s works, which gently satirize upper-class life, this painting presents a straightforward depiction of a family enjoying coffee. The central focus is the lady of the house, seated with an air of quiet authority, while a manservant carefully pours the drink—a reminder of coffee’s place as both a luxury and a routine pleasure. The servant’s prominent inclusion suggests his importance within the household.

Coffee, like sugar, was first commercialized in Europe through Venice in the second half of the 16th century. With its strong trade connections, was instrumental in spreading coffee culture across Europe, transforming it from an exotic import into a daily necessity. Longhi’s scene captures not just a moment of leisure but also the ways in which global commodities like coffee shaped domestic and social life in Europe.

10. Andy Warhol, Martinson Coffee

Andy Warhol’s (1928–1987) Martinson Coffee is a striking example of his fascination with consumer culture and branding. Created during the 1960s, a period when Warhol was deeply engaged with mass-produced imagery, the artwork captures the bold graphic design and commercial appeal of Martinson Coffee, a well-known American brand. Warhol’s use of screen printing, a technique borrowed from advertising, reinforces the painting’s connection to mass media and consumerism.

The repetition of the coffee can, with its bright colors and stark lettering, transforms an everyday grocery item into an emblem of modern life. By the mid-20th century, coffee had become one of the most widely consumed beverages in the world, thanks to industrial-scale production, global trade networks, and the rise of supermarkets, which made it an affordable and easily accessible staple in nearly every household. Its status as a daily necessity rather than a luxury underscores Warhol’s choice of subject, emphasizing the way branding shapes even the most routine aspects of life.

The Art of Coffee

From intimate morning rituals to bustling cafés and opulent courts, coffee has been a subject of fascination for centuries, appearing in countless works of art that reflect its evolving role in society. Whether a symbol of community, solitude, or modernity, it remains, above all, a source of warmth, comfort, and inspiration.

So, as you finish sipping on your own cup, take a moment to appreciate the rich legacy of coffee in art—one that continues to brew creativity in every era.