L'Aile (The Wing)
1893
Medium
lithograph
Dimensions
image: 32 × 24.4 cm (12 5/8 × 9 5/8 in.) sheet: 52.5 × 39.2 cm (20 11/16 × 15 7/16 in.)
Classification
Department
CG-E
Museum
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Credit
Rosenwald Collection
Accession Number
1943.3.7385
Art Historical Context
Odilon Redon's *L'Aile (The Wing)*, created in 1893, is a captivating lithograph that exemplifies the artist's mastery of Symbolism. Measuring 32 × 24.4 cm on a larger sheet, this print from the National Gallery of Art's Rosen Collection draws viewers into Redon's dreamlike world, where ethereal forms emerge from shadow and suggestion. Redon, a French artist active in the late 19th, transitioned from his earlier "Noirs" seriesmysterious black-and-white works—to vibrant pastels, but lithography remained a favored medium for its ability to capture subtle tonal gradations akin to charcoal drawing...
About the Artist
Odilon Redon · 1840–1916
Odilon Redon (1840-1916) was a French Symbolist painter, printmaker, and pastellist whose visionary art bridged the 19th-century Symbolist movement and 20th-century Surrealism. Born Bertrand Redon in Bordeaux on April 20, 1840, he earned the nickname "Odilon" from his mother Odile. His father, who made his fortune in the Louisiana slave trade, conceived Odilon in New Orleans before the family retu...