Punctual 1900

Paul-Albert Besnard made this etching, Punctual, without providing a specific date. This leaves us to consider its creation within the broad span of his artistic career, marked by significant social and cultural shifts. The piece captures a scene of vulnerability and inevitability: a figure of death looming over a sleeping person while a clock hangs on the wall. The stark contrast between the vulnerability of sleep and the stark presence of death speaks to the universal human experience of mortality. Besnard lived through a time of rapid industrialization and social change, which likely influenced his reflections on mortality. It’s as if the artwork asks, what does it mean to live a life knowing that death is always punctual? The personal and emotional dimensions of this piece encourage us to reflect on our own lives and confront the uncomfortable truths about time and mortality.