Verklede centaur staat op stenen tafelen 1768

This image was made in Amsterdam in 1768 by Simon Fokke. It depicts a costumed centaur standing on a table surrounded by onlookers. But let us not be fooled by the jest, the symbols here hint at something more profound. Note the centaur. This mythological creature, half-man, half-horse, embodies the duality of human nature, reason versus instinct. A concept echoed across epochs, from ancient Greek bestiaries to Medieval allegories of virtue and vice. The centaur symbolizes the untamed, primal aspects of the human psyche, a concept explored in psychoanalysis through the study of our unconscious desires. And what of the grotto below? A dark, cavernous space where figures recline, perhaps representing the subconscious depths from which these primal urges emerge. This motif is a constant negotiation between our rational selves and the darker impulses that simmer beneath the surface. In this image, the tension between the centaur above and the grotto below reveals a timeless struggle between the civilized and the wild, a dance that continues to shape our cultural and artistic expressions.