Czóbel Béla Still Life, 

Bela Czobel sketched this still life with pastels, capturing a bouquet of blooms in a vase. These are no ordinary flowers, but rather, powerful symbols. Since antiquity, flowers have been associated with notions of transience, beauty, and even mortality. Think of the Vanitas paintings of the Dutch Golden Age, where decaying blooms serve as a stark reminder of life’s fleeting nature. Yet, the symbol of the flower is far from static. In the Renaissance, we see Botticelli using flowers to allude to fertility and renewal, particularly in works like "Primavera." The dance of flora becomes a celebration of life's regenerative power. Consider, too, how the color of the flower shifts its symbolic weight: red often signifies passion or sacrifice, white, purity or mourning. Through a glass darkly, the flower motif continues its dance through the ages, laden with our hopes, fears, and collective memories. It has been resurfaced and evolved, taking on new meanings in different historical contexts.