Jewels, shoes and ornaments that have been with us at a party, at a funeral, or on street walks, everywhere, suddenly cease to exist, without any feeling of regret, for other ‘things' languidly twinkle in shop windows and the fashion urges us on.
"Vanitas" in Lorenzo Lotto's works is a fading, lifeless petal of a rose, or a warning skull condemning worldliness from a gloomy corner of the canvas.
Vanity has always been a suspicious inclination, reminiscent of narcissism, foreboding transience... yet what thrills of rapture and satisfaction, what short-lived, heartfelt bliss we are given by an earring, a tie, a daring pair of shoes. |
|
 |
|
