Description
Hetaone’s “Technical Check” is a contemporary meditation on the timeless theme of vanity. Measuring 26 cm wide and 35 cm high with the frame, this A4-size piece uses various media: digital printing, walnut and felt, applied to a technical inspection report of the artist’s car, issued by the Feu Vert brand.
At the centre of the work is a human skull drawn with a line. The walnut paste, applied dripping and stained, enhances the shadows and accentuates the volume of the skull. This use of walnut mildew, far from being clean and uniform, brings a raw and chaotic texture that intensifies the effect of decomposition and fragility.
Using a MOT as a medium is not trivial. It symbolizes the verification and maintenance of physical integrity, a direct parallel with the human condition and mortality. Hetaone transforms a trivial and everyday document into a profound reflection on life and death, recalling the classical still lifes that contain symbols of mortality.
The theme of vanity, central in this work, is a direct reference to 17th century vanity paintings, where elements such as skulls, watches and candles were used to remind us of the futility of earthly goods and the inevitability of death. Artists like Harmen Steenwyck with his famous “Vanity: Still Life with skull” and Philippe de Champaigne with “Vanity” have explored this theme in a striking way. Hetaone, through “Technical Check”, is part of this tradition while adding a contemporary touch.
The juxtaposition of a utilitarian document and an iconography of death creates a visual and conceptual tension, questioning our relationship to time and mortality. The dripping and the spots of walnut chestnut are not only aesthetic, but also evoke the degradation and inexorability of the passage of time.
In conclusion, Hetaone’s “Technical Check” is a work that combines technical and philosophical thinking in a bold way. It reminds the viewer of the precariousness of human existence and the absurdity of our material concerns, thus anchoring a classical problem in a resolutely modern context.
