Zweiter Tag Nichts (Second Day Nothing) by Jonas Burgert is a monumental work with a narrative that recalls the cataclysmic worlds of Dutch master Hieronymus Bosch (1450−1516). Equally accomplished in the command of space and mood through color, Burgert presents a fantastic scene of figures caught in the aftermath of what appears to have been an urban accident. The hole in the plaza grid reveals an acidic green liquid. While people are struggling to escape or have succumbed to their fight, others are busy collecting the spill in buckets. Burgert’s work shows the disparity in human nature faced with a crisis and suggests underlying personal meaning and broader interpretations.

Jonas Burgert was born in 1969 in Berlin, where he currently lives and works. He received an MA from the Academy of Fine Arts, Berlin. His work has been exhibited at the Hamburger Kunsthalle, Germany; Saatchi Gallery, London; and Folkwang Museum, Germany.