Robert Budzinski, with his 1924 wordless novel, Totentanz, and his revised version in 1948, Der Sieg des Lebens, may be the only artist in the last 500 years to depict a human defeating the Grim Reaper. The traditional Totentanz/Danse Macabre/Dance of Death inevitably ends with Death taking his victim. In this wordless story, Death approaches a young woman for a dance but ends with the Maiden turning the skeleton into a pile of bones.
stands triumphantly after reducing the
Grim Reaper to a disjointed pile of bones.
Robert Budzinski (born April 5, 1874 in Klein Schläfken in the district of Neidenburg; died February 27, 1955 in Marburg) was a German painter, graphic artist and author. He mastered the graphic techniques of lithography, woodcut, etching, drypoint, and linocut.
self-portrait circa 1929.
Photo credit: Wikipedia
Budzinski did two versions of this wordless story:
1924 Totentanz (Dance of Death)
1948 Der Sieg des Lebens (Auch ein Totentanz) – The Victory Of Life (Also A Dance Of Death)
NOTE: I would like to thank Witold Olbryś, a collector of Robert Budzinski’s works, for his insights as well as for his photos.
Miscellaneous comments about Budzinski’s images and wordless story
Quick heads-up: these comments aren’t intended to be scholarly. Feel free to jump in and share your thoughts! Click on the links below.
Defeating Death – two ex libris in addition to Totentanz, where Budzinski explores the defeat of the Grim Reaper.
Pentagrams – good or evil. Why do some of Budzinski’s prints have pentagrams?
Different sized prints from the same plate – a question of interest to printmakers.
The Maiden’s Victorious Pose – what is she doing with her hands?
Dancing motif – in case you missed it – a chain of people are dancing on the cover of Totentanz.
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