An Examination of the Indicators of “Death” and “Nothingness” Represented by the Objects in “Vanitas” Themed Works

Abstract

There are many works depicting themes of mortality and death in European art history. Especially between the 16th and 17th centuries, naturemorte works with the theme of death and mortality, called "vanitas", became an important style in European art. Vanitas paintings, which transform the moral values of Christian beliefs between life and death into a symbolic language with the principle of "momente mori" (remember that you are mortal), transform the objects used in the composition into a different form of expression. This metaphorical style of expression expressed by objects carries visual perception to an internal way of thinking between matter and meaning, by using objects that express death and mortality, as opposed to worldly pleasures and science. The theme of vanitas, which started from the Middle Ages to the Renaissance and Baroque periods, establishes the sociological context of religion, life and morality in terms of society, against the material wealth of the world, through a visual language.