Death Chasing the Flock of Mortals 1896

Editor: This is James Ensor’s 1896 etching, “Death Chasing the Flock of Mortals.” The sheer density of figures is overwhelming! There's so much chaos packed into this small print, and the skeletal figure wielding that enormous scythe creates an immediate sense of dread. What do you make of the relationship between death and the crowd here? Curator: Ah, Ensor! Always dancing on the edge of the grotesque, isn’t he? It’s tempting to see this as a simple allegory, but Ensor never allows us that comfort. This is a parade of mortality, absolutely, but is it a cautionary tale, a morbid jest, or a critique of societal blindness? Note the direction in which they run – mostly *toward* us! The crowd seems almost…inviting? Editor: That's a good point. They don't really seem to be escaping in any organized fashion. Are they oblivious, maybe? Or, worse, complicit? Curator: Exactly! And what of Death itself? A spindly, almost comical figure, barely able to hoist that enormous scythe. Is death terrifying, or simply… cumbersome? Maybe even ridiculous? Ensor presents us not with answers, but with a potent visual paradox. Is this really the end or just another day? Look at all of those little monsters dancing around! This looks like the party before or after the actual party of death! Editor: It's amazing how a relatively small etching can hold so much ambiguity. It really forces you to confront your own ideas about mortality, doesn't it? Curator: Precisely. And that's Ensor’s genius – holding up a mirror to our own absurd dance with the inevitable. So what, exactly, does it reflect back at *you*? Editor: Definitely some food for thought… and maybe a few nightmares. Thanks! Curator: My pleasure. Perhaps that's Ensor's greatest trick; a dance that never really ends.