Cephalus en Prokris 1801

Pierre Audouin etched this image of "Cephalus and Prokris," capturing a tragic moment from classical mythology. Prokris lies dying in Cephalus's arms, an arrow piercing her breast. This iconography of the fatal wound is a recurring motif, echoing through art history from antiquity to the Renaissance. Consider the arrow itself, a symbol deeply rooted in human consciousness. Once a tool of survival, in art, it transforms into an emblem of fate, desire, or even divine retribution. Think of Saint Sebastian, his body pierced by arrows, embodying both suffering and transcendence. The arrow’s trajectory, the piercing of flesh - these actions bypass conscious thought, striking directly at our primal fears and empathies. Here, the dying Prokris embodies vulnerability, a figure whose demise evokes pity and fear. Like Ophelia floating in the water, she connects us to the transience of life and the inevitability of death. Her death becomes a mirror reflecting our own mortality. The motifs of death and vulnerability resurface, perpetually evolving, reminding us of the cyclical nature of human experience.