Abstract
The artist Odilon Redon (1840–1916) was a French symbolist known for both the dark, surreal prints and drawings he created in the first half of his career, as well as the colorful pastel works that characterized the second half of his career. This study examines two drawings by Redon in the J. Paul Getty Museum collection—Apparition (ca. 1880–1890) and Head within an Aureole (ca. 1894–1895)—executed during the period in his career in which he was transitioning between these two modes. In order to better understand the materials the artist chose and the methods by which he applied them, two noninvasive, macroscopic characterization techniques—macro X-ray fluorescence (MA-XRF) scanning and reflectance imaging spectroscopy (RIS)—were employed. These techniques allowed the materials present to be distinguished and the relationship between their applications visualized. Coupled with fiber optic reflectance spectroscopy (FORS) and Raman microspectroscopy with principal component analysis (PCA), these results give new insight into the materials and methods used by Redon. Six distinct black drawing materials and a yellow pastel were identified in Apparition, underscoring the complexity of Redon’s noir drawings. As he began using color pastel more frequently he seemed to use a simplified black palette; in Head within an Aureole the artist used only two black drawing materials and three color pastels (two pink and one blue). This research provides a framework for future noninvasive technical analysis of works by Redon in other collections as well as mixed media drawings more generally.
Highlights
The French symbolist Odilon Redon (1840–1916) was known for both his dark, surreal drawings and prints, as well as his vibrant works in color pastel
Select macro X-ray fluorescence (MA-XRF) element distribution maps for Apparition and Head within an Aureole are presented in Figs. 2, 3, 4, and 5, respectively, and reflectance imaging spectroscopy (RIS) data are presented in Figs. 6 and 7, respectively
Deconstructing Redon’s drawing methods Taken together, the imaging and spectroscopic data collected in this study have enabled Redon’s drawing methods to be reconstructed for these two drawings
Summary
The French symbolist Odilon Redon (1840–1916) was known for both his dark, surreal drawings and prints, as well as his vibrant works in color pastel. Throughout the 1870s and 1880s Redon explored the color black in his noir drawings, applying and manipulating materials such as charcoal, black chalk, Conté crayon, and black pastels to achieve a variety of shades and textures within a composition. Beginning around 1880, the artist began to use color pastels to supplement the diversity of black media in his drawings, eventually turning almost entirely to color by the end of the century. Apparition shows a bearded figure below a floating rosette-like feature, surrounded by swirling black shadows.
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