After a night sleep, I discovered that the text about the arts and death did not finish in an adequate way. There was no beautiful passing away at the end, only an almost death… Goya recovered and went on painting for a while more.

The interesting question is though, if his illness helped him to make the paintings for his house better…

What does an almost death experience do to an artist? Does it help him to paint deeper and greater art? And is it advisable to have the spectator have a similar experience, so he can appreciate the works more?  

Or is the power of imagination sufficient enough?

It reminds me of a thing a buyer of my work once said to me. He argued that most likely I had reached to the ripeness in my art thanks to having walked on the edge. This can be true…

I also think of Robert Hughes. He made a great documentary about the late works of Goya.

Death can hit a spectator and an artist, but also a piece of art.

Ashes to ashes, dust to dust, all comes to an end and some artworks have the passing away as a theme. 

self destroying machine by Tinguely.

For years Tinguely built machines that auto-destroyed themselves. It was only after he came into such big economical troubles that he invented machines that lived on a little longer. Long enough for him to make some money with them. Who else than a Swiss can invent such machines…

not self destroying  machine by Tinguely.

I am glad to make art and not profound philosophical reflections on it. Should I thank Duchamps for having smashed all arguments out of the art critics hands with a urinal? Are the arts still alive in the critics?

art according Duchamps.

Back to the spectator and death through the arts. Is it a nice idea to have Christo pack an art lover and having him sucked vacuum? That art piece will surely kill. And what about a whole parliament? In these confusing days it might just be a great idea… It would bring the arts back on the barricades of society!

packed parliament, but not sucked vacuum.

I finish with reminding the great documentary by Robert Hughes (1938 – 2012, couldn’t he have lived a little while longer?) about Goya. Click on the image of the fighting farmers and enjoy (if you understand Spanish). Have a good night sleep.