VANITY OF VANITIES
060514 / Photography: Nicholas Xav. Low | Lighting Assistant: Ng Shimin | Logistics Assistants: Joanna Chan, Samantha Lee, Ng Shimin | Art Direction: Nicholas Xav. Low
Special thanks to The Heritage Shop
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Advertorial shoot for The Heritage Shop
"Vanity of vanities; all is vanities"
Adapting a popular 17th century painting style into photography, Nicholas presents Vanity of Vanities.
This series of still life photography was inspired by a body of symbolic work of art called vanitas, which seeks to remind viewers of the transience of life, the futility of pleasure, and the certainty of death.
Drawing parallels to the brevity of life, Nicholas aims to remind his viewers of the brevity of local heritage and way of life in the aspects of Music, Fashion, School, Communication, Childhood and Food.
Continuing in his signature style of using symbols in his works, Nicholas has included a myriad of them in this series. The repeated skull motifs serve as a reminder of the certainty and suddenness of death; watches and clocks symbolise the length and passing of life; books represent human knowledge; silk cloth represents luxury and pleasure and fruits, decaying flowers and butterflies symbolise the ephemeral nature of life.