The Vanitas

The Vanitas & Other Tales of Art and Obsession | By Jake Kendall

Spanning 300 years of art history and weaving art styles including Cubism, Surrealism, and the Baroque into his prose, Jake Kendall’s collection tells the stories of those with an obsession for creation – artists who sacrifice friendships, careers, romance, and even their own happiness in pursuit of a vision.

How far would you go for the sake of art?

In these 8 illustrated short stories, Monet, Van Gogh, Géricault and others navigate the boundary between art and experience through masterfully written prose that reflects each artist’s style. The collection culminates with title story The Vanitas, where Sandro Signorelli’s philosophy that a lifetime of faith and toil shall receive its just reward is challenged by the emergence of a new artist. Across town, Michelangelo Merisi is making seismic waves. The city of Rome cannot help but be captivated by this explosive eruption of talent, swagger, seduction, and violence, while Sandro’s life is plunged into crisis by a rival who does not even know his name.