The American painter Wayne Thiebaud, famous for his depictions of food, painted several works featuring cheese, including 'Cheese and Crackers' (1962) and other still lifes. Thiebaud's vibrant, Pop Art-infused paintings elevate everyday objects, including cheese, to the status of high art, reflecting the mid-century American fascination with consumer goods and popular culture.

Thiebaud's cheese paintings have inspired poets to explore the sensory and symbolic dimensions of food in contemporary life, with writers such as John Ashbery and Kenneth Koch referencing his work in their poems. The visual richness of his cheese depictions provides a powerful stimulus for ekphrastic poetry, and his work has helped cement cheese as a subject for both visual and verbal art in the modern era.