REDON, Odilon (1840-1916)
REDON, Odilon (1840-1916) A Edgar Poe (Mellerio 37-43) the complete set of six lithographs and the paper folder in bistre, 1882, on Chine appliqué paper, from the edition of fifty, a presentation copy, inscribed by the artist to Sarah Bernardt on the front cover in brown ink, the full sheets, generally in good condition, in later paper mounts, the grey paper folder partially split at the spine and with several short tears, in a modern cloth and red morocco-backed portfolio case (portfolio) Overall: 18 x 13 in. (463 x 330 mm.) Literature: Alfred Werner, The Graphic Works of Odilon Redon , Dover Publications, Inc., New York, 1969. "They contained productions of an inconceivable eccentricity. Here it was an enormous die that winked a mournful eye; there, a series of landscapes, -barren, parched, burnt-up plains, riven by earthquakes, rising in volcanic heights wreathed with wild clouds under a livid, stagnant sky" (J. K. Huysmans, A Rebours , quoted in: Werner, p. VIII). In this excerpt from the novel A Rebours , describing the pictures adorning the walls of the villa of the novel's decadent anti-hero, the Duke des Esseintes, J. K. Huysmans famously referred to the art of his friend Odilon Redon establishing for the first time a wider audience for 'the bizarre talent of this singular artist' (J. K. Huysmans, quoted in: Werner, p. VIII). For Redon, for whom literature was a significant inspiration throughout his life, this rare homage by a writer to a visual artist seems especially fitting. Redon produced several important series in response to literary works, including L'Apocalypse de Saint Jean , Gustave Flaubert's Tentation de Saint-Antoine and a series of drawings for Charles Baudelaire's Les Fleurs du Mal . His approach, however, was far from illustrative. Instead he sought to describe visually what he termed as 'correspondences', visionary associations suggested by the 'uprush of the unconscious' rather than literal interpretations of the text. This free association is taken a step further in A Edgar Poe where Redon invented the titles of the images himself in the manner of the author. Redon's wonderfully strange and disquieting images perfectly resonate with Poe's own, peculiar gothic sensibilities. The most famous plate in the series, "The eye, like a strange balloon, moves towards Infinity", is the apotheosis of Huysman's summation of Redon's work as 'the nightmare transported into art' (J. K. Huysmans, quoted in: Werner, p. VII). This particular copy is inscribed to the famous French actress Sarah Bernhardt (1844-1923), who was immortalized in lithographs by Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec and Alphonse Mucha One of the great stage actresses of her day she was also a pioneer in early silent films.
REDON, Odilon (1840-1916)
REDON, Odilon (1840-1916) A Edgar Poe (Mellerio 37-43) the complete set of six lithographs and the paper folder in bistre, 1882, on Chine appliqué paper, from the edition of fifty, a presentation copy, inscribed by the artist to Sarah Bernardt on the front cover in brown ink, the full sheets, generally in good condition, in later paper mounts, the grey paper folder partially split at the spine and with several short tears, in a modern cloth and red morocco-backed portfolio case (portfolio) Overall: 18 x 13 in. (463 x 330 mm.) Literature: Alfred Werner, The Graphic Works of Odilon Redon , Dover Publications, Inc., New York, 1969. "They contained productions of an inconceivable eccentricity. Here it was an enormous die that winked a mournful eye; there, a series of landscapes, -barren, parched, burnt-up plains, riven by earthquakes, rising in volcanic heights wreathed with wild clouds under a livid, stagnant sky" (J. K. Huysmans, A Rebours , quoted in: Werner, p. VIII). In this excerpt from the novel A Rebours , describing the pictures adorning the walls of the villa of the novel's decadent anti-hero, the Duke des Esseintes, J. K. Huysmans famously referred to the art of his friend Odilon Redon establishing for the first time a wider audience for 'the bizarre talent of this singular artist' (J. K. Huysmans, quoted in: Werner, p. VIII). For Redon, for whom literature was a significant inspiration throughout his life, this rare homage by a writer to a visual artist seems especially fitting. Redon produced several important series in response to literary works, including L'Apocalypse de Saint Jean , Gustave Flaubert's Tentation de Saint-Antoine and a series of drawings for Charles Baudelaire's Les Fleurs du Mal . His approach, however, was far from illustrative. Instead he sought to describe visually what he termed as 'correspondences', visionary associations suggested by the 'uprush of the unconscious' rather than literal interpretations of the text. This free association is taken a step further in A Edgar Poe where Redon invented the titles of the images himself in the manner of the author. Redon's wonderfully strange and disquieting images perfectly resonate with Poe's own, peculiar gothic sensibilities. The most famous plate in the series, "The eye, like a strange balloon, moves towards Infinity", is the apotheosis of Huysman's summation of Redon's work as 'the nightmare transported into art' (J. K. Huysmans, quoted in: Werner, p. VII). This particular copy is inscribed to the famous French actress Sarah Bernhardt (1844-1923), who was immortalized in lithographs by Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec and Alphonse Mucha One of the great stage actresses of her day she was also a pioneer in early silent films.
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.jpg "Source: Christie's")
.jpg "Source: Christie's")
