A pizza pie could be much more than just baked dough covered with tomato sauce and mozzarella cheese, ready to eat. This is evident in the exhibition Pizza Time at New York’s Marlborough Gallery, which will be on view until October 6. The show presents this popular dish as a work of art. Obviously, these renditions of the popular Italian dish cannot be eaten, but you, can “taste” them with your eyes and imagination while the display lasts at Marlborough Broome Street.

Pizza Time features more than 25 works of art with the tasty Italian treat as protagonist. The exhibit was curated by Vera Neykov, the gallery’s associate director, and includes pieces signed by celebrated artists such as Willem de Kooning, Michelle Devereux, Andrew Kuo, Jonah Freeman, John Baldessari and Darren Bader, among others.

The walls of the exhibition space are filled with the most imaginative proposals like Catherine Ahearn’s half open box that suggests a freshly baked pizza with mushrooms and olives, or John Riepenhoff’s big pizza, cut in 20 pieces. Another interesting rendition on view at Marlborough is a still-life photograph by Oto Gillen, which echoes a canvas by Abraham van Beyeren. Just looking at it makes you salivate, wishing to remove a piece of the pepperoni pizza with melted cheese that seems to be falling to the ground.

“Sharing a pizza is a metaphor for community and reunion,” said Neykov. It is beautiful to see how everyday pleasures become works of art. This is an inspiring and stimulating show that will leave everyone with an appetite for pizza. It is not rare that after visiting the exhibition, we would want to continue enjoying Pizza Time in the nearest pizza parlor. ■