Comparing Memento Mori And Bull Skull, Fruit, Pitcher,

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The works of art I chose to compare and contrast are Memento Mori, "To This Favour", 1879 by William Michael Harnett, and Bull Skull, Fruit, Pitcher, 1939 by Pablo Picasso. The symbolism behind these two paintings are very similar. There are also some similarities in the composition of these two paintings, but there are many differences in the composition of these two paintings.
The first symbolic similarity is that these paintings have a meaning of death. Whenever I see skulls I automatically think of death. In Harnett’s painting, the skull, candle that has been burnt completely down, and hour glass that has expired reinforce the symbolism towards death. He used a quote from Hamlet in his painting which can also strengthen theme of death in