Below are images of two works of art. ?Vanity,? on the left, was painted in 1648 by Jansz van Treck. The second, titled ?For the Love of God,? was created in 2007 by contemporary British artist Damian Hirst. Van Treck?s painting depicts a skull wreathed in straw, an hourglass, an extinguished pipe and tapers, musical instruments (a flute, a viol and bow), a black lacquer box and a Rhenish stoneware jug (both collectors' items), a book of music and a drawing, a theater ?playbook,? a shell and a straw used for blowing bubbles, and a helmet. Hirst?s sculpture consists of a platinum-covered human skull (complete with real human teeth) set with over 3,000 diamonds. Hirst recently claimed to have sold his skull for $100 million. Both works of are examples of the ?vanitas? art work, which contains objects intended to cause the viewer to reflect on the inevitability of mortality and the consequent foolishness of all human ambition. Central to both artworks is a human skull, itself a powerful art symbol with a rich history of its own.

Study both paintings. Think about the symbolic value(s) of the human skull in these works, other works of art, literature, and culture. Then, write a well-constructed essay in which you clarify how effective both are in employing the human skull to symbolize the ?vanitas? theme.


"Vanity" by van Treck


"For the Love of God" by Hirst


The Transience of Life, as represented in Art
By Peter S------

In art, symbols such as the skull and hourglass; representing the transience of life, are often juxtaposed with other symbols such as books, jewels, and pipes; all representing science, decadence, and/or pleasures. Ultimately, this comparison symbolizes the futility of earthly achievements and vanity of earthly possessions. Several prominent pieces of artwork, including the 1648 painting ?Vanity? by Jansz van Treck and the more contemporary sculpture ?For the Love of God? by Damien Hirst, are excellent examples of this genre of art, dubbed ?vanitas.?
?Vanity of vanities, saith the preacher, vanity of vanities; all is vanity? (Ecclesiastes 1:2). Jansz van Treck?s painting, aptly titled ?Vanity,? may as well be a physical representation of this statement. An extinguished pipe, musical instruments, collectors? items, books, and other items that were attributed to wealth, knowledge and power in the 17th century are all present in the painting. These items imply that their owner, although not depicted in the painting, is a wealthy and educated noble. Two items; however, do not fit with the rest: a wreathed skull and hourglass. These are the two most prominent elements in the still-life. These two articles give the piece its meaning. The skull is universally known as the grotesque symbol of death that pervades pieces of art; the hourglass is a representation of the small period of time that men and women have to live. Treck includes these two eldritch symbols in his still life because they actually change the symbolism of the myriad of other items in the picture. The meaning of these possessions changes from an indication of wealth, knowledge, and power to a display of extreme vanity. Wealth is vanity, what you own is your possessions. Intelligence is vanity, what you learn becomes your possession. Power is vanity, what you control becomes your possession. Accomplishments are vanity, what you achieve becomes your possession. As stated in Ecclesiastes 1:2, all is vanity. This painting represents the fact that whatever you accomplish in life is will only stay with you while you are alive. Consider the extremely dark colors used in the painting. The light is fading away from the cluster of vanities; the owner of these vanities is fading away from peoples memories as he slowly dies. All is vanity, and death is inevitable.
In contemporary America, a person?s wealth is not measured by his or her accomplishments, leaning, and collections of items as it was in the 17th century. Today, wealth is measured by how much jewelry you have and how much money you have. Hirst?s ?For the Love of God? represents both. It is encrusted with 8,601 flawless diamonds. It is made of platinum, one of the rarest and most valuable metals in the entire world. ?It [is] the most expensive work of art ever created,? costing about $25,000,000 to make (O?Hagan). It was sold for $100,000,000. Oh, and it?s a life-size sculpture of a human skull. When Hirst?s skull (and the hundred-million price tag) was revealed, a message was sent to the world. Hirst says, ?I just want to celebrate life by saying to hell with death. What better way of saying that than by taking the ultimate symbol of death and covering it in the ultimate symbol of luxury, desire, and decadence?? (O?Hagan). What does this statement mean? It means that vanity is a good thing. We are all going to die, so why not enjoy life while we can? Why not buy jewels? Why not spend money on yourself? Why not spend a larger amount of money that most people in the world have ever owned on a diamond-covered skull? This piece is saying that all of the wealth that one has will be of no value to him or her when he or she dies. It is saying that people who amass a great amount of wealth over their lifetimes (usually through working hard) have put enough money and effort into life (and most likely, charity) that they deserve the privilege of being vain and enjoying earthly pleasures while they can. Their efforts to obtain the money would have been futile otherwise. If one was given the option to enjoy life and have nice things, even though he or she would not be able to keep them when he or she dies, why would one say no? The answer is simply that one wouldn?t. Yes, personal possessions are futile when you die. ?To hell with death.? Because of this message, the price tag is just as much of a piece of artwork as the skull itself. They are complimentary; one could not deliver the intended message without the other.
Both ?Vanity? by van Treck and ?For the Love of God? by Hirst represent vanitas, but they both represent it in an extremely different light. Von Treck?s ?Vanity? attempts to convey that vanity is pointless since nothing you have in the material world will follow you to the spirit world. Hirst admits through ?For the Love of God? that material possessions cannot follow you to the grave. That, though, is the prime reason that they should be important in the material world. Hirst believes that as long as you live in the material world, possessions are important. He attempts to show that there is a lifestyle to live in the earthly world that indeed does involve possessions, and there is a separate lifestyle to live in the spiritual world that does not involve earthly possessions. One should not attempt to live the spiritual lifestyle while he is still alive. These two messages are conflicting, as one is basically saying that vanity is a good thing while it lasts (?For the Love of God?), while the other says that vanity is pointless (?Vanity?). They both may represent different aspects and interpretations of it, but both pieces of art do indeed convey the vanitas theme: material possessions cannot follow you to the grave, all is vanity. Whether vanity is a good thing or not is left up to the viewer to decide.













Works Cited

1. Gopnik, Blake. ?An Anatomy of Consumption: Sold for a Record $100 Million, a Bejeweled Skull Embodies a Simple Truth; You Can?t Take It With You.? The Washington Post. 7 Sept. 2007.

2. "Vanitas." Encyclop?dia Britannica. 2007. Encyclop?dia Britannica Online. 17 Oct. 2007. <http://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9074816>.

3. Shaw, William. ?The Iceman Cometh.? The New York Times. 3 June 2007. <http://www.nytimes.com/2007/06/03/magazine/03Style-skull-t.html>.

4. O?Hagan, Sean. ?Hirst?s Diamond Creation is Costliest Work Ever.? The Observer. 21 May 2006. < http://arts.guardian.co.uk/news/story/0,,1779919,00.html>

5. The Holy Bible, King James Version. World Bible Publishers inc., 1974. (Ecclesiastes 1:2)

um... k

Okay, let's see...

For one, I think you should ditch the second-person. It doesn't seem "professional" I think.

Second, in this sentence:

QUOTE

In art, symbols such as the skull and hourglass; representing the transience of life, are often juxtaposed with other symbols such as books, jewels, and pipes; all representing science, decadence, and/or pleasures.