Odilon Redon - Art Lecture
Odilon Redon is an artist born in 1840 in France (Bordeaux). His name was Bertrand-Jean Redon,
but he became known as Odilon, who was born from his mother's nickname, Odile. (Redon, s.d.) Soon
he showed his artistic skills, winning a prize at school at the age of 10. He started studying architecture
at his father's will but failed the Paris' Ecole des Beaux-Arts entrance exam. (Redon, s.d.) He learned
sculpture and Rodolphe Bresdin started him in engraving and lithography. In 1870 he participated in the
Franco-Prussian War. When the war ended, he went to live in Paris and worked on coal and
lithography.
In 1878 it was his year of release, with recognition with Guardian Spirit of the Waters and in 1879 he published an album of lithographs ("Dans le Reve"). (Redon, sd.) His engravings represent themes like the macabre, the fantastic. He has influences from surrealist and dadaist movements. (Britannica, s.d.)
In 1884, a cult novel by Joris-Karl Huysmans will be released, because the novel tells the story of an
an aristocrat who collected Redon's drawings.
In the 90s he started using pastel and oils, which became dominant in his work. He represented still
lifes with flowers. (Britannica, s.d.) Several events made him better known: (i) he made an exhibition in
1899 with Nabis at Durand-Ruel's;
(ii) Andre Mellerio published in 1913 a catalog of engravings and lithographs; (iii) in the same year he
received an individual representation at the ew York Armory Show; (iv) in 1923, Mellerio published
"Odilon Redon: Peintre Dessinateur et Graveur". He dies in 1916. (Redon, s.d.)
Studying different artists is important. As it was said in the lecture, artists influence each other in some
way, by the things they observe, by what they see, what they like or dislike, by the materials they use,
by the techniques, among other aspects. It is important to understand how other artists work, their life
path so that we can relate to our own work
context. Whether to personally not lose focus and not give up on our work (Odilon Redon's work was
only recognized when he was 38), be it professionally as a direct influence on what we do.
The following images were chosen because they somehow inspire me to create characters. It was
possible to create characters from some of Odilon Redon's works. Starting with some ideas, we can be
creative and create others.
Britannica (s.d.) Odilon Redon [online] Odilon Redon | French painter | Britannica available from:
(accessed 17th Oct 2021)
Moma (s.d.) Odilon Redon [online] Odilon Redon | MoMA available from: (accessed 17th Oct 2021)
Redon, Odilon (s.d.) Odilon Redon [online] Odilon Redon Biography | Life, Paintings, Influence on Art |
odilon-redon.org (odilon-redon.org) available from: (accessed 17th Oct 2021)
Good set of notes, would have been made better by giving your thoughts on how his work might be an influence on yours and as an animator with the ability to create any kind of world with any kind of character, I think Redon would be a good research element for you.
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