where is that renaissance painting with those two fellers and a giant fucking random skull on the floor that looks like it was accidentally stretched out in photoshop
THANK YOU
somebody please explain
Someone once told me it’s like that because it was designed to be hung in a stairwell so the skull pops out as you walk past.
…I guess it works but you have to be at a pretty sharp angle
There was a whole trend at one point where artists would include something in their paintings (usually a skull, for whatever reason) that’s super distorted in just the right way so that it looks normal if you hold the painting up to a convex/concave mirror. I have absolutely no idea why. But I think that’s what’s going on here.
In case anyone’s curious, here’s what it looks like when you walk past it irl:
It does have a 3D effect to it! It’s pretty neat, guess it would be even more impressive to people from the 14th century.
honestly, people just looking at the skull are missing the real deal here
You can read any implied text you see in this thing, even the book, that’s how detailed it is. Look at the painting on those letters!
jesus christ you’re just showing off now, Hans!
HANS OH MY GOD
anyway, the skull apparently had some meaning about the transcendence of death, you can only see it clearly when you can’t see the world clearly and vice versa, but man, I’m all about the detail in this guy’s shit
No, I think you’re missing the real deal here
as an art historian, i think this is the best post on tumblr
As I understand it (as it was taught to me), this is an example of Momento Mori (Wikipedia link): “Remember that you must die:” an allegory about how, regardless of whatever worldly power or knowledge we obtain (The globe, the jewels, the rich clothing, etc.), death is ever present, and we’ll all be equal when we’re food for maggots.
It’s also a major flex for an artist to show off their skills.
(The irony is, of course, that that the painting, and the palace where it is displayed, are both examples of the wealth and power that the painting is criticizing & mocking).
