Vanitas Definition

Vanitas is a specific branch of art which is mostly associated with still life painting that existed in Flanders and Netherlands during the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. This branch of art also existed in different parts of the world during various periods. In vanity, an artist uses objects such as skulls, putrid food, dry flowers for making the audience aware about the conciseness of human life and unavoidability of death. The term Vanitas originated from the latin biblical verse “Vanitas vanitatum omnia vanitas” which means “Vanity of vanities; all is vanity”.
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