Vita somnium breve 1888

Arnold Böcklin painted "Vita somnium breve," sometime between 1856 and 1858. Böcklin was a Swiss symbolist painter whose work combines a preoccupation with mythology with a distinctly modern sense of psychological unease. Here, we see the allegorical stages of life set within a single painted plane. The work’s Latin title translates to “Life is a short dream," suggesting the fleeting nature of existence. Two infants play innocently in the foreground, while behind them a bare-breasted woman gathers flowers, perhaps a representation of fecundity. A knight on horseback and the figures of an old man and a grim reaper are represented in the background. Böcklin presents us with a vision of life that is both beautiful and melancholic. The painting touches on the personal and universal themes of mortality.