Skount is debating whether to be or not in this adaptation of a hundred plus year old photo of Sarah Bernhardt, who holds the court jester Yorick’s skull in hand. A grave contemplation of suicide that leads the Hamlet character to contemplate the great leveling force of death on all stations and classes, this particular depicting of Shakespeare has had a profound effect on Skount.
Skount. Würzburg, Germany. July 2015. (photo © Skount)
“This photo has always been poetic for me since I first saw it,” he says, “I see in the photo a woman with a really special life that is intense, hard, full of difficulties and now finally a satisfactory life,” he says of the James Lafayette photograph that was possibly taken at the turn of the 20th century.
“To be or not to be,” is perhaps the most noted excerpt from the play and is
also the title of Skounts’ mural for Street Meet at Mainfranken Theater in Würzburg, Germany. See below the original photograph and the artists’ initial sketch for the wall.
“To be or not to be,” is perhaps the most noted excerpt from the play and is
also the title of Skounts’ mural for Street Meet at Mainfranken Theater in Würzburg, Germany. See below the original photograph and the artists’ initial sketch for the wall.
also the title of Skounts’ mural for Street Meet at Mainfranken Theater in Würzburg, Germany. See below the original photograph and the artists’ initial sketch for the wall.
Portrait of Sarah Bernhardt as Hamlet. (public domain, James Lafayette)
Skount. Würzburg, Germany. July 2015. (photo © Skount)
HAMLET: To be, or not to be–that is the question:
Whether ’tis nobler in the mind to suffer
The slings and arrows of outrageous fortune
Or to take arms against a sea of troubles
And by opposing end them.
To die, to sleep–No more–and by a sleep to say we end
The heartache, and the thousand natural shocks
That flesh is heir to. ‘Tis a consummation Devoutly to be wished.
To die, to sleep–To sleep–perchance to dream: ay, there’s the rub,
~Shakespeare
Skount. Würzburg, Germany. July 2015. (photo © Skount)
Skount’s original sketch for the mural (© Skount)
Skount. Würzburg, Germany. July 2015. (photo © Skount)
Other Articles You May Like from BSA:
BSA Images Of The Week: 02.14.21
Welcome to BSA Images of the Week. 新年快乐! Happy Lunar New Year! It's the Year of the Ox, and there was a lot of celebration during this snowy week in New York, although it appeared to be subdued b...
Welcome to BSA Images of the Week. 新年快乐! Happy Lunar New Year! It's the Year of the Ox, and there was a lot of celebration during this snowy week in New York, although it appeared to be subdued b...
"I Don't Wanna Be, I Am" in Lisbon at Underdogs
Both the Portuguese Underdogs Gallery and the Spanish Ink and Movement (IAM) project have been building respectable artists rosters with a sense of intention - of current and former graffiti/street a...
Both the Portuguese Underdogs Gallery and the Spanish Ink and Movement (IAM) project have been building respectable artists rosters with a sense of intention - of current and former graffiti/street a...
Gabriel Pitcher Creates New Mural for "Project Zero" in Walthamstow, London
“Encased in a wooden frame, the figure of Steve is shown seated, in a palette and pose reminiscent of traditional celebratory portraits of kings or popes. In his hand, he holds a timepiece, a symbol ...
“Encased in a wooden frame, the figure of Steve is shown seated, in a palette and pose reminiscent of traditional celebratory portraits of kings or popes. In his hand, he holds a timepiece, a symbol ...
Liliwenn on Island in Tunisia For Djerbahood with C215, El Seed, ROA
The Djerbahood project is midway through its stated goal of having one hundred artists from 30 countries come to paint in this North African island in Tunisia called Djerba. Organized by the same folk...
The Djerbahood project is midway through its stated goal of having one hundred artists from 30 countries come to paint in this North African island in Tunisia called Djerba. Organized by the same folk...
1UP Crew on a Wall in Moscow / Artmossphere Biennale 2018
Berlin’s 1UP Crew was in Moscow to participate in this year's Artmossphere Biennale. We caught up with the guys for an impromptu action on the walls of the Winzavod Art Center while the installations ...
Berlin’s 1UP Crew was in Moscow to participate in this year's Artmossphere Biennale. We caught up with the guys for an impromptu action on the walls of the Winzavod Art Center while the installations ...