"The messengers of death decapitated"

Fridau April 18, 2008 in Paris
Jan Fabre @ Le Louvre
'The messengers of death decapitated' (2006) was intended for 'Homo Faber' in Antwerp (2007), where it was exhibited in front of Frans Floris' 'Fall of the rebel Angels', features five (for 'The Angel of Metamorphosis in the Louvre 2008: five) owls' heads placed on a church cloth. Why seven? The altar and the cloth could suggest that we are dealing with the Seven sacraments. But why then are there only five left in the Louvre? We are told that Jan Fabre wants to overcome the finiteness of our existence by decapitating the messengers of death. And that, 'in the Flemish tradition, these nocturnal birds are associated with madness as well as wisdom'. Does that mean that Fabre also wants to eliminate madness and wisdom? However that may be, this installation is surely the bearer of an immensely interesting content. Fortunately enough: as pure 'sculptures', they would certainly not catch the attention of the public on the exhibition of some local hobby club or craft fayre Fortunately also that Jan Fabre was so kind to provide us with the explanatory title and some comments: the stuffed heads show no trace of decapitation, and they surely do not look dead: they are looking at us with open human eyes. Animals with human eyes: Fabre's eternal theme of metamorphosis....