Odilon Redon: from Darkness into Light
Pegasus and the Muse
Odilon Redon (1840-1916) is one of the most intriguing painters of the turn of the 20th century. He is also one of the most original, and, by centering his subject matter in the worlds of myths and dreams, he is certainly one of the most timeless. With the current exhibition of his works at the Odakyu Museum in Shinjuku, the curators have succeeded in creating a little oasis of calm and beauty above the hustle and bustle of Tokyo's busiest station.
Redon's career resembles the life cycle of a rather odd insect. Going to Paris as a young man to study first architecture and then art, he became disillusioned with the 'academic' style of painting taught by his professors and returned to his native Bordeaux, dissatisfied and unhappy. Here, like an insect pupa, he turned his back on the external world and started to work almost exclusively in charcoal, using his dreams and inner life for inspiration.
He was drawn to the stories of Edgar Allan Poe and the more fantastic etchings of the great Spanish artist, Francisco Goya, who died in Redon's own hometown in 1828. In Adam and Eve (ca. 1875) two tree trunks soar into the air like the legs of one of Goya’s giants, above the furtive Biblical characters.
Some of the most astounding images at the exhibition are his monochrome prints, depicting, among other things, disembodied heads, shrouded figures and sea creatures with human faces. The oddity of these works found favour with the poets and writers of the Decadent and Symbolist movements, which were popular in late-19th-century France, and soon Redon was producing illustrations for books, including the The Temptation of Saint Anthony by the writer, Gustave Flaubert.
The Symbolists proclaimed the imagination as the true interpreter of reality, and Redon's black and white works are certainly replete with imagination, but, although quirky and amusing, they often seem doodlish and adolescent. The recognition they brought, however, helped him to emerge from his self-imposed cocoon.
As he passed the age of 50, he began to spread his wings and started working increasingly in color, both in oils and pastels, discovering a long dormant talent. After undergoing a religious crisis and recovering from a serious illness, he also developed a much more positive attitude. From a twilight world, his art finally emerged into the sunlight.
His subject matter remained rooted in the mythical or supernatural, but instead of figures symbolic of death, he painted flying chariots and the winged horse Pegasus. His oil painting, Pegasus and the Muse (ca. 1907-1910), shows the central figures against a sky filled with a riot of rich, warm colors, as if the Sun were shining through the clouds of Jupiter.
Just like a butterfly that has emerged from its cocoon, he also turned to flowers, painting masterly still lifes, such as his pastel, Flowers in a Blue Vase (ca.1912-14) and his oil painting, Peonies and Chrysanthemums (ca 1900-02) . His extremely soft touch captured the delicacy and fragrance of flowers., but flowers in vases always look a little dead and unnatural. More remarkable than these still lifes was the way he successfully used flowers and verdure as a background in his paintings, complementing his soft, dreamy skies. An excellent example of this isThe Death of Orpheus
(ca. 1905) where the dying figure of the mythical poet seems to dissolve into the surrounding beauty of nature.
Redon's career resembles the life cycle of a rather odd insect. Going to Paris as a young man to study first architecture and then art, he became disillusioned with the 'academic' style of painting taught by his professors and returned to his native Bordeaux, dissatisfied and unhappy. Here, like an insect pupa, he turned his back on the external world and started to work almost exclusively in charcoal, using his dreams and inner life for inspiration.
He was drawn to the stories of Edgar Allan Poe and the more fantastic etchings of the great Spanish artist, Francisco Goya, who died in Redon's own hometown in 1828. In Adam and Eve (ca. 1875) two tree trunks soar into the air like the legs of one of Goya’s giants, above the furtive Biblical characters.
Some of the most astounding images at the exhibition are his monochrome prints, depicting, among other things, disembodied heads, shrouded figures and sea creatures with human faces. The oddity of these works found favour with the poets and writers of the Decadent and Symbolist movements, which were popular in late-19th-century France, and soon Redon was producing illustrations for books, including the The Temptation of Saint Anthony by the writer, Gustave Flaubert.
The Symbolists proclaimed the imagination as the true interpreter of reality, and Redon's black and white works are certainly replete with imagination, but, although quirky and amusing, they often seem doodlish and adolescent. The recognition they brought, however, helped him to emerge from his self-imposed cocoon.
As he passed the age of 50, he began to spread his wings and started working increasingly in color, both in oils and pastels, discovering a long dormant talent. After undergoing a religious crisis and recovering from a serious illness, he also developed a much more positive attitude. From a twilight world, his art finally emerged into the sunlight.
His subject matter remained rooted in the mythical or supernatural, but instead of figures symbolic of death, he painted flying chariots and the winged horse Pegasus. His oil painting, Pegasus and the Muse (ca. 1907-1910), shows the central figures against a sky filled with a riot of rich, warm colors, as if the Sun were shining through the clouds of Jupiter.
Just like a butterfly that has emerged from its cocoon, he also turned to flowers, painting masterly still lifes, such as his pastel, Flowers in a Blue Vase (ca.1912-14) and his oil painting, Peonies and Chrysanthemums (ca 1900-02) . His extremely soft touch captured the delicacy and fragrance of flowers., but flowers in vases always look a little dead and unnatural. More remarkable than these still lifes was the way he successfully used flowers and verdure as a background in his paintings, complementing his soft, dreamy skies. An excellent example of this is
Redon was a great influence on subsequent generations of painters. His flower pieces were much admired by Matisse, and the Surrealists regarded him as one of their precursors. But his life was also an inspiring tale of one man's journey from darkness into light
"Odilon Redon: Into the World of Dreams and Mystery" ran until June 10, 2001,at the Odakyu Museum, Odakyu Dept. Store, Shinjuku, Main Building 11F
C.B.Liddell
The Japan Times
30th May, 2001
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