As we step into the Lunar New Year and celebrate the Year of the Snake, there’s no better time to explore how the art world has long been captivated by this slippery, sinuous creature. In many cultures, snakes symbolise transformation, renewal, and wisdom – themes that resonate deeply with art’s power to provoke thought and change. From ancient carvings to contemporary installations, snakes have left their mark across the canvas of art history.
Klimt’s painting The Medicine might have stirred controversy in its day, but it’s impossible to deny the hypnotic beauty of the golden snake slithering through the work. Representing both danger and healing, the snake here channels its age-old connection to transformation and medicine – an appropriate theme for this Lunar New Year, as we shed the skin of the past and step into the future.
In more recent years, while Kehinde Wiley’s contemporary reimaginings of classical portraits are known for their boldness, one of his works, Judith and Holofernes, features snakes woven into the details of the background. The serpent in this work adds an undercurrent of tension, aligning with its symbolic role as a harbinger of change and unpredictability.
American artist Alexander Calder changed the course of modern art with his 3D kinetic sculptures and paintings, with the principles of Futurism, Constructivism, and early non-objective painting. Snakes were a key motif throughout many of his works, in both painted and sculptural form. The snake blends in beautifully with the bold abstract shapes Calder is renowned for.
Yayoi Kusama, the queen of polka dots and infinite patterns, once created a series inspired by snakes. Her Infinity Net works mimic the looping, hypnotic movement of a serpent. The repeating patterns suggest the cyclical nature of life and the universe, echoing the snake’s symbolism of renewal and rebirth – a perfect nod to the Lunar New Year’s spirit of fresh beginnings.
