Finally finished!
Tuesday, August 10, 2010 11:22 PM
So I've been working all day on my new layout and I love it! Some of my favorite artwork is called Vanitas, or emptiness in Latin, which was popular during the 16th and 17th centuries. Often times images like skulls, spilled wine, gold, flowers or fruit wilted and rotten, musical instruments, mirrors and so on. These all represented the shortness of life and how the material objects we collect in this lifetime cannot travel with us when we die. For example, a skull represents the inevitable death--after all, there are only two things in life that are certain: taxes and death. Flowers can represent fleeting beauty that disappears with age. Clocks obviously symbolize time and how it ticks by, not stopping for anyone or anything.
This may all sound kind of depressing, but I see something beautiful to learn from this type of artwork. The things that we waste our lives worrying about--money, jobs, possessions--these things are not what defines us. If someone were to gather all the things that represented me when I died, I would not want to be surrounded by expensive things and useless objects. Rather, I would want to be surrounded by people--people who carry stories of my life, who can speak for what kind of person I was. I would rather make a difference in one person's life than make a million dollars.
Some may see this type of artwork as morbid, and in a way it is. However, to me, it's a reminder of the things I want to do with my life and the things I want to avoid.
Click here for a brief overview of the Vanitas style of artwork.
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