Double portrait with Skeleton 1916

Editor: Here we have Lovis Corinth's "Double portrait with Skeleton," a small etching. It feels quite somber and surreal with the human figures posed next to a skeleton. What do you see in this piece? Curator: Considering Corinth's historical context, particularly the rise of anxieties about mortality during and after World War I, I see this not just as a memento mori, but a commentary on the fragility of the male body and societal structures. How does the inclusion of both the skeleton and the ram's skull speak to that? Editor: That's interesting! I hadn’t considered the ram’s skull as part of the commentary. It's like a study of different states of being. Curator: Exactly, and perhaps challenges traditional portraiture's emphasis on idealization, instead exposing underlying tensions about identity, gender, and history. I now see this etching as more than just a portrait, but as a critical lens through which to examine the social and political climate of its time. Editor: Thanks. Thinking about it that way really opens up new avenues of understanding for me.