Marabou Stork with a Snake c. 1865

Curator: Antoine Louis Barye, who lived from 1795 to 1875, created this small bronze sculpture, “Marabou Stork with a Snake.” Editor: The bird’s posture is so evocative. It seems to be pondering some very serious existential question. Curator: The Marabou Stork is often seen as an omen, a harbinger of death and decay because they are scavengers. The snake it holds symbolizes transformation and the cycle of life. Editor: So, the image is charged with meanings about life and death. One reads so much into how the stork holds the snake, almost protectively. Curator: Perhaps Barye was exploring the beauty even within the creatures that are considered symbols of death. Editor: It makes you wonder about society’s obsession with certain images and how that affects our cultural imagination. Curator: Indeed, images can have very long lives. Editor: Thank you, that really shifted my perspective.