The familiar vanitas themes within Memento Mori instantly connect this work to the 17th-century Dutch Vanitas tradition. Pasindu’s contrast between blooming flowers and the human skull creates a direct visual dialogue between vitality and decay.

The vibrant flowers represent the peak of life, while the skull serves as the traditional memento mori, a reminder of mortality. Death is a natural counterpart to life rather than a void. This specific historical influence allows the viewer to see the “blooming” of life as something made more meaningful by the inevitability of the end.