Reigerschedel op een Drentse almanak 1913 - 1915

Jan Mankes made this little drawing of a heron’s skull on a calendar using pencil; you can see how softly and carefully the artist worked. There’s something about the starkness of the image that gets to me – I think it’s because it’s a memento mori; these objects were employed by artists to remind us of the transience of life. When Mankes was making this drawing, he had tuberculosis and knew his time was limited. So he draws a skull on top of a calendar – a way of measuring time. It’s heavy, but it also feels peaceful to me. The drawing is so delicate, but it speaks to the way that artists like Mankes, and many others, have reckoned with the end of life, and the strange beauty that resides within it. It’s like he’s trying to capture something elusive, a fleeting moment of understanding.