The Year of the Snake

In early  2025, you can find red lanterns and garlands adorned with images of the reptile throughout Vancouver’s Chinatown and feel the significance of this enigmatic creature everywhere. In Chinese culture and art, the snake is associated with graceful wisdom and flexible intuition, which is why this year is considered one of renewal, transformation, and personal growth. 

Throughout centuries and across continents, artists from other cultures have used the snake in their work, giving it varying meanings: from divine protector to harbinger of danger. Let’s take a look at some of the most recognizable depictions of snakes in visual art and why they continue to captivate today.

Iconic Snakes: Scaly and Sinuous

One of the earliest appearances of the snake in art was in Ancient Egypt around 3,000 BCE. The Uraeus, the stylized depiction of a cobra, adorned the headdresses of pharaohs as a symbol of divine authority and protection for these rulers. Associated with the goddess Wadjet and believed to ward off evil, the Uraeus snake can be found in countless sculptures, paintings, or even tomb decorations as a watchful guardian of rulers and a powerful emblem of kingship.

Jumping to 1504, the era of the Renaissance in Germany, a very famous image with a snake at the center was created: “The Fall of Man”, an engraving by German artist Albrecht Dürer. While the biblical story of Adam and Eve has inspired countless artworks, it is one of the most notable depictions in art history. In this piece, the serpent appears as a tempter, coiled around the Tree of Knowledge as it offers the forbidden fruit to Eve. This portrayal aligns with the Christian tradition of the snake as a symbol of temptation and sin, a theme that persisted throughout Medieval times and culminates in Dürer’s take.

Several centuries later, in 1907 in Post-Impressionism France, a dreamlike and mysterious painting transports viewers to a surreal jungle setting. “The Snake Charmer” by Henri Rousseau was commissioned by the mother of French artist Robert Delaunay and depicts a hypnotic scene in which a woman plays a flute as snakes writhe around her. Rousseau’s self-taught style, combined with the fantastical elements of this work, lends the painting an air of enchantment. Turning the snake into a mystical and otherworldly symbol, aligning with themes of the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

Contemporary art covers a vast range of motifs, and while the snake is one of them, there hasn’t yet been a piece of serpent art as iconic or creatively significant as the ones of the past. However, the differences in settings, mediums, and recognition in the current world of art have birthed a new genre: street art. One of its most renowned, even if enigmatic representatives is Banksy, who produced a sculpture titled “Mickey Snake” in 2015. It depicts Mickey Mouse, the figure of childhood innocence, being “consumed” by a dangerous, deceitful python in an unsettling scene. This imagery can be interpreted as a direct critique of Disneyland, as it was first displayed in Banksy’s temporary art project Dismaland, and aligns with the anonymous artist’s recurring critique of capitalism.

The Timeless Significance of Snakes

From Ancient Egypt to modern surrealism, from fine art to street art, the snake has remained a strong and versatile symbol in visual art. It represents danger and seduction, transformation and change—sometimes all at once. In mythology, it has been a guardian, a monster, or a divine messenger. Across the planet, throughout history, and beyond specific artistic movements, the snake’s fluid form and rich meaning continue to inspire artists and audiences alike. 

As Vancouver celebrates the Year of the Snake in 2025, this multifaceted ancient creature is a reminder of its timeless role in the global human imagination, individual cultural expression, and visual art.

by Melanie Kage