For there to be a skull, we know that something must have died. From pirate flags to cartoon poison labels, skulls typically carry the messages of death and decomposition. But there seems to be a little more nuance in the case of animal skulls. When you see a mounted deer head, or a cow skull, what is the first thing that comes to mind? Is it danger? That one small town bar? Texas? Whatever preconceptions and connotations animal skulls may hold over us, there is a certain amount of leeway in their interpretation. Animal skulls have spanned every century and culture, creating a large amount of subject matter, for a large volume of art. This art provides us with a window into the different symbolisms of animal expiration.
This exhibition has been curated to compare the various impressions the death of animals and their skulls have left on different cultures, time period’s, and artists. Hopefully, the pieces on display here will widen the lens of death, to the perspectives implied by the depicted. Through these diverse interpretations, we are invited to contemplate how history has viewed these symbols, and to create a well informed perspective for ourselves. From life to death, fragility to fertility, the art here proposes views that are larger than any single narrative.
A grand scene of mountains spans the background of the piece, with a lake and waterfall before them. There are native Americans camped along the water preparing animals from a recent hunt in the forests that surround them. These animals provide sustenance and represent the bounty of the nature. Yet, if we zoom in on the bottom of the painting, we’ll notice the remains of another animal. Not a carcass providing meat, but a bleached white skull picked dry of any amenity. Even in this single painting, we see the contrast between dead animals representing sustenance, and, at the same time, the ugly result of cyclical nature.
Artist: Georgia O'Keeffe (American, Sun Prairie, Wisconsin 1887–1986 Santa Fe, New Mexico), Title: From the Faraway, Nearby, Date: 1937, Medium: Oil on canvas, Dimensions: 36 × 40 1/8 in. (91.4 × 101.9 cm), Accession Number: 59.204.2.
A massive skull spanning the entirety of a mountain-ranged desert. This time, the skull,
rather than nature, is the centerpiece of the painting. The desert, like most of the
painting, seems glossed over since the brushstrokes are nearly imperceptible. The
smoothness of the painting combined with the softer colors makes this barren desert
seem almost inviting. Antlers sprouting from the brown base of the skull encircle the
mountains and climb into the sky. O’Keeffe displays the harsh material of skull and
desert in such a way that conveys a certain beauty in the barrenness. Here, the skull is
given life apart from the passed animal and is shown to have beauty unto itself.
Artist: Georgia O'Keeffe (American, Sun Prairie, Wisconsin 1887–1986 Santa Fe, New Mexico), Title: Cow's Skull: Red, White, and Blue, Date: 1931, Medium: Oil on canvas, Dimensions: 39 7/8 × 35 7/8 in. (101.3 × 91.1 cm), Accession Number: 52.203.
A bleached cow skull is set against a cloth background of red white and blue centered
along a black stripe. The cut of the skull’s eye sockets combined with its angle of
orientation, makes it seem like the skull is glaring at us. Everything about this painting
screams power. The ominous look of the skull, the colors of the American flag, and a
blue background that seems to spread upwards like fire. The lines are sharp, and the
contrast between skull and flag is stark. So it would seem that even the same artist in
the same time period depicts skulls with a diverse perspective.
Title: Bucranium, Period: Second Intermediate Period, Dynasty: Dynasty 14–17, Date: ca. 1640–1550 B.C., Geography: From Egypt. Medium: Horn, bone, paint, Dimensions: Overall H. 41.5 cm (16 5/16 in.); W. of horns 75 cm (29 1/2 in.), Accession Number: 16.2.23.
This ornately decorated skull adorned the graves of what is now believed to be the
Medjayu people. Although the paint is now chipped and faded we can imagine the
vivid colors and patterns that once assuredly attended this skull. The specific purpose
of this piece may be a bit ambiguous, but it was undoubtedly created with a relation to
death in mind. The correlation may be jubilant, spiritual, or contain some other form of
symbolism. Regardless of the skull's true intention, this animal skull was used in
memoriam for the deceased and was symbolically tied to death.
Title: The Stag at Bay (From Incidents in a Stag Hunt). Date: ca. 1495–1515. Culture: South Netherlandish. Medium: Wool warp, wool wefts, Dimensions: 91 x 144in. (231.1 x 365.8cm), Accession Number: 45.128.21.
Men in bright ornate clothes circle a stag. The poor beast is in the process of its demise
as men’s dogs lunge upon it. Despite the stag’s unfortunate circumstances, the scene is
bright and cheery. The men are wearing nice clothes, and flowers are blossoming over
every inch of the forest floor. This scene is one of abundance, and human flourishing,
with a dying stag front and center. Thus, by this depiction, this animal’s death and
dying is representational of the flourishing around it.
Artist: Arthur Rothstein, Title: The bleached skull of a steer on the dry sun-baked earth of the South Dakota Badlands, Date: 1936, Medium: 1 negative: nitrate, Dimensions: 2 1/4 x 2 1/4 inches or smaller, From: Library of Congress (www.loc.gov).
A black and white photograph with a cow skull front and center. The desert ground beneath it is scorched and cracked. The long shadow cast behind the horns indicates a glaring son, and the broken sand confirms it. This photograph conveys nothing if not barrenness and aridity. If we were forced to expand this photo our visual archives would probably suggest a tumbleweed and perhaps a lonely cactus. This skull helps create a scene of desolation, where it seems nothing could survive.
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