Death in Art
On Zoom. Mon. Sept. 9. 6 to 8 pm est. $35CAD/$25USD
Death is an evergreen theme in literature, painting, and all of the arts, because it is something every one of has experience with, or will have. It could be said that death makes life epic and precious. Because people we love die, we wrestle with grief, loss, injustice, and pain. Experiencing the loss of a loved one is humbling and changes us. Death makes life a great mystery, as we attempt personally and culturally to come to terms with the inevitable. Rituals and celebrations and beliefs help us cope and process. Yet even to those of deep religious faith, or convictions about an afterlife, or a pragmatic attitude of acceptance, losing a loved one and facing death ourselves can be very dark, traumatic, mythic, and transformative. Just a few of the realities we go through include witnessing the pain and suffering of someone who is sick or mentally ill; the shock of losing someone to murder or suicide; the helplessness and chaos of a terrible or gruesome accident.
In this session, we will discover and discuss a variety of fascinating treatments on the theme of death in art history. We will engage with the work we see to free our own words and create some notes and ideas and some poems or short prose.
Trigger warning: Art history is full of unflinching imagery on the subject of death, and we will be looking at paintings that some may find disturbing. We will be speaking openly about illness, murder, suicide, war, grief, loss, fear, and pain.