Fallen Angel Looking at a Cloud (c.1875) by Odilon Redon

Fallen Angel Looking at a Cloud - Odilon Redon - c.1875

Artwork Information

TitleFallen Angel Looking at a Cloud
ArtistOdilon Redon
Datec.1875
Mediumoil,canvas
Art MovementSymbolism
Current LocationStedelijk Museum, Amsterdam, Netherlands

About Fallen Angel Looking at a Cloud

Odilon Redon’s “Fallen Angel Looking at a Cloud,” created circa 1875, stands as a poignant example of the Symbolist movement. The piece is an oil painting on canvas, categorized within the genre of symbolic painting, which expresses the artist’s personal and emotional responses to the world through the use of symbolic imagery. Presently, the artwork is housed at the Stedelijk Museum in Amsterdam, Netherlands. This work captures the introspective and mystical qualities that are characteristic of Redon’s oeuvre and the wider Symbolist movement.

The artwork portrays a solitary figure with dark, prominent wings indicative of an angel, whose posture suggests a sense of dejection or contemplation. The angel is depicted gazing toward a solitary cloud amidst a hazy, indeterminate background that occupies the upper portion of the canvas. The contrast between the angel’s muscular physicality and the implication of its fall from grace conveys a powerful emotional narrative. With the angel’s back mostly turned towards the viewer, the work invites an aura of mystery and introspection, allowing for personal interpretation and emotional resonance. Redon’s masterful use of muted and atmospheric color palettes serves to enhance the contemplative mood of the scene, underlining the Symbolist prerogative to evoke rather than to describe.

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