Head of a Deer

In nature, there are documented cases where, after a fight between two deer, one ends up with the full skull of its opponent entangled in its antlers. Though rare, this phenomenon has been observed and photographed, offering a striking reminder of the brutal realities behind survival and dominance in the wild. The victorious deer, far from walking away unburdened, carries a haunting trophy — the literal and symbolic weight of the one it defeated.
This image of a deer bearing its rival’s head resonates with a deeper metaphor: that victory often comes with a cost, and that the marks of struggle linger far beyond the moment of triumph. It echoes, in a distant but powerful way, Diego Velázquez’s painting Cabeza de venado (Head of a Deer), housed in the Prado Museum. In that work, the severed head of a stag is portrayed with calm precision against a neutral background. Stripped of drama, the image isolates the subject and invites quiet contemplation — not unlike how the entangled deer forces us to confront the quiet, disturbing consequences of violence in the natural world.
 
150 x 150 cm
oil on linen
2024