By focusing on Rubens’s depiction of Silenus—fleshy, sagging, and deeply human—Meis suggests that "true" gods are those that can suffer and die, rather than untouchable, distant entities. Historical and Personal Echoes
Meis reflects on living in Antwerp , Rubens's home, and how the city’s history of war and destruction mirrors the Dionysian chaos Silenus represents. The Drunken Silenus On Gods, Goats, and the _s ...
The book's title refers to a famous painting by . Meis uses this image of a bloated, stumbling minor god as a gateway to explore deeper, darker truths about the human condition. Who is the Drunken Silenus? Meis uses this image of a bloated, stumbling
He delves into the scandalous history of Rubens’s father, Jan Rubens , whose own life was marked by passion, betrayal, and near-execution. In his 2020 book, The Drunken Silenus: On
In his 2020 book, The Drunken Silenus: On Gods, Goats, and the Cracks in Reality , author weaves a hypnotic narrative that bridges the gap between Baroque art, ancient myth, and existential philosophy.
Meis argues that the "drunkenness" of Silenus represents a moment when the orderly, rational facade of our world (the Apollonian) cracks, revealing a messy, violent, but undeniably real underlying truth (the Dionysian).