Vanitas Print

The title of this painting was inspired by Dutch 17th century Vanitas paintings, which feature reminders of mortality hidden in seemingly-innocent still life compositions. The painting is my attempt to represent the idea of life cycles and the brevity of life. (The fish at the top will soon die and become the decaying fish at the bottom. The fly in the picture may be eaten by the frog, but it may also feed on the dead fish.) Apart from those creatures, which were drawn from photos, many of the things shown are painted directly from things that I've collected on country walks and brought home, such as stones and soon-to-decay leaves. I painted all of these things within an abstract circular design, rather than in a natural setting, in order to give them more impact. I began the painting by establishing the main shapes and tones in a charcoal drawing, then added more details as I decided exactly where to put each particular object. (For example, I painted over the frog once and redrew it in a different position.) It took a long time to complete due to the size and amount of detail required. It was included in a jury-selected 2022 exhibition of art that was organised nationally and took place simultaneously in several venues across Turkey. The sides of the canvas are also painted. It is protected with two layers of acrylic spray varnish and shipped in a tube.

Print:Giclee on Fine Art Paper

Size:9 W x 12 H x 0.1 D in

Size with Frame:14.25 W x 17.25 H x 1.2 D in

Delivery Time:Typically 5-7 business days for domestic shipments, 10-14 business days for international shipments.