Design by Death

“Design by Death” (originally “Charlie Parker’s Favorite Painting”), oil on massonette, Gertrude Abercrombie (1946)

Good day mates. We will never know whether Gertrude Abercrombie was trying to portray a dark episode of her life or whether it was just a thought. We do know however, that “Design by Death” (1946), is a battle between the cowardly death and the brave continuity to live. This painting portrays that no matter how sad, dark and tragic life has been, there is still a way to save ourselves. It represents a reminder of our greatest asset; free will. To me mates, this piece of art exhibited by the Ackland Museum of Art is a dream the author had one night in which she had the chance of taking her life away because of the sadness she had within, or choosing to continue to live.

This “oil on massonette” uses low key dark colors, suggesting darkness, sadness, tragedy or even evil. The desertion portrays loneliness, and the clear sky and full moon gives a perception that something or someone is watching you. The powerful brightness of the moon certainly illuminates the night, and the low-level cloud gives a perception that this must be the top of a mountain or a hill.

The range of colors are in the white and black scale, except for the objects such as the ladder, book, socks, and box which are painted with strong colors to emphasize their importance to the painting’s situation. The horizon line between the ground and the sky is very clear, and the absence of any sort of foreshortening makes the painting pretty straight forward.

Its simplicity in art and color actually makes the painting more intriguing and interesting, since it allows for the analysis of the philosophical and moral encounter the author is trying to show rather than having to get tangled in trying to understand and interpret the art techniques used by Abercrombie.

At a first impression, the painting might seem like it is designed for someone to kill himself, and in fact it is. It is important to understand though, and this is strongly hinted by the painting’s name, that this design was not made by the person about to commit suicide but was rather a situation already set up by the time she got there. The painting is called “Design by Death”, not “Design for Death”, meaning that the author of this scheme is something or someone representing death.

Looking at the painting, one can notice several things. There is a rope hanging from a tree, a ladder, and a box. It would seem like the person would climb the ladder, tighten the rope around his neck and then kill himself. However, this is not the case. This design by death allows also for a way of salvation and choice; let’s analyze this.

If there is a ladder, then why is there a box? And vice versa. There is no need for a box if you can climb the ladder and attach the rope to your neck. Likewise, there wouldn’t be any need for the ladder if you could just step onto the box, put the rope on your neck and then kick the box away. Yes it is true that somehow the rope had to be tied to the tree, but once it was tied; there is no reason for the ladder to still be standing if you already have the box to step onto. Obviously one of the two objects is not part of “death’s design” and is in fact a way of salvation; this object is the ladder.

The box by itself is an easy way for the person to kill himself, but the ladder however, if looked upon from a straight angle (as if one is right in front it), is pretty much aligned with the full moon. This suggests that the ladder is actually a way out of this design for death. This may sound too imaginary, but that is in fact the whole idea the author is trying to put through.

It seems like you could jump from the ladder to the moon, which might represent god, heaven, or just a way out of the painting. Had Abercrombie not wanted to put so much importance onto the moon, she would have made it less bright and perhaps a little darker. Let’s remember mates that when one is trying to glorify the meaning of something good, it is usually done with bright colors such as white, while the emphasis on evil is created with colors such as red and black.

Other important objects are the socks. It seems like the person was taking off her socks prior to climbing onto the box. Why would anyone do this? Does being barefoot as opposed to wearing socks make a difference if she was about to commit suicide? The action of taking off the socks represents the indecision and fear about what to do. One sock is next to the box, and the other one is on the ladder. What made the person ultimately climb the ladder?

The green book. This book made the person change his or her mind about suicide. The person came in from the right side of the picture wearing her socks. She was almost determined to end her life with the “design by death” but was very nervous and still had some doubt going through her mind. Before climbing onto the box, she decided to take off her socks. However before she could fully take the second one off, she saw a book on top of the box. This book was perhaps the bible, letters from her family, a prayer from god, or something that completely changed her mind and gave her a spark of hope to continue living.

She decided to climb up the ladder, and as she was doing so, her remaining sock that was half on fell off as she climbed the ladder. She jumped into the moon and woke up in her bed with a new outlook on her life and feeling good that she was able to escape death’s design.

I understand that many of you out there might not fully agree with my interpretation of the painting, and may actually strongly disagree with it. However, when one wants to analyze art and the message that the author is trying to send out, one must do it with an open mind and much imagination. We all look at things in a different way, and when a piece of art is subject to many distinct interpretations, it can be considered a brilliant painting because it allows for the human mind to dig into its deepest thoughts. I hope you have enjoyed my posts this last couple of months; this is not a good bye but a see you later mates!

http://www.ackland.org/tours/classes/abercrombie.html