Once again, my minimal effort to double-check a quote resulted in a lot more reading than I intended. That quote – “Ars longa, vita brevis” (Art is long, life is short) is just part of a longer quote by Hippocrates (the pater of medica himself!), and I think it’s out of context.

My read of the quote had always been along the lines of “the artist may die, but art will live beyond them” – but that doesn’t seem to be what Dr. Hippo wanted to get across. The whole quote:

Notable is how one should define “art” – not in the sense of a work of aesthetic beauty, but art as in a craft or skill. This is not a grand proclamation about art outlasting life (which is fine sentiment), but instead an observation on how challenging it is to get anything done in this life. You’ve only got so many years – and learning takes a while, plus you’re only at your prime briefly (if at all), and you’ve got to trust yourself to not screw it up. Thanks doc! To be fair, he actually said this:

Ὁ βίος βραχύς,

ἡ δὲ τέχνη μακρή,

ὁ δὲ καιρὸς ὀξύς,

ἡ δὲ πεῖρα σφαλερή,

ἡ δὲ κρίσις χαλεπή.

A few years later (roughly two thousand), a little book called Ars Moriendi was published. The Art of Dying – look at that correct usage of “art”. Not a great read – kinda cobbled together quotes from the bible and church fathers all about what to expect while dying, mostly in regards to temptations. But the woodcuts are a beauty to behold.

The book was written in the early 15th Century as a reaction to the Black Death from half a century before. Death was on the brain, and this book was not only to put the dying at ease, but also empowered others to help with the dying process, owing to a severe shortage of priests and other church certified folks who were those summoned to aid in the end of life.

Never hurts to start confronting death, wherever you are in life. So you can now quote me (in Latin):