Odilon Redon, “Etruscan Vase With Flowers”, (1900-1910), Metropolitan Museum of Art, Maria DeWitt Jesup Fund, 1951; acquired from The Museum of Modern Art, Lillie P. Bliss Collection

Quotes from Odilon Redon

“I have often, as an exercise and as a sustenance, painted an object down to the smallest accidents of its visual appearance; but the day left me sad and with an unsatiated thirst. The next day I let the other source run, that of imagination, through the recollection of the forms and I was then reassured and appeased.”   Odilon Redon from The Art Story

“My originality consists in bringing to life, in a human way, improbable beings and making them live according to the laws and probability, by putting – as far as possible – the logic of the visible at the service of the invisible.”  Odilon Redon from The Art Story

Mission Accomplished!

This painting, like so many of his other works, feels and looks like another world. Though there is nothing unconventional about the subject matter itself, he paints flowers that do not exist in nature with colors that are unexpected. The result is an extraordinary and completely original artwork.

TheMet describes the painting this way:

“In this bouquet, Redon combined palm fronds with artificial or imaginary flowers in a fantastical blue and ochre color scheme. The title identifies the vase as Etruscan, but it was likely a modern ceramic imitating an ancient example from the Mediterranean region.” quote from TheMet 

I have so many questions, and so little time…. A proper post about Redon is undoubtably in my future. For now, let us enjoy the details. 😉

Click for Enlarged Detail

Odilon Redon, “Etruscan Vase With Flowers”, (1900-1910), Metropolitan Museum of Art, Maria DeWitt Jesup Fund, 1951; acquired from The Museum of Modern Art, Lillie P. Bliss Collection

Odilon Redon, “Etruscan Vase With Flowers”, (1900-1910), Metropolitan Museum of Art, Maria DeWitt Jesup Fund, 1951; acquired from The Museum of Modern Art, Lillie P. Bliss Collection (detail)

Odilon Redon, “Etruscan Vase With Flowers”, (1900-1910), Metropolitan Museum of Art, Maria DeWitt Jesup Fund, 1951; acquired from The Museum of Modern Art, Lillie P. Bliss Collection (detail)

Odilon Redon, “Etruscan Vase With Flowers”, (1900-1910), Metropolitan Museum of Art, Maria DeWitt Jesup Fund, 1951; acquired from The Museum of Modern Art, Lillie P. Bliss Collection (detail)

Odilon Redon, “Etruscan Vase With Flowers”, (1900-1910), Metropolitan Museum of Art, Maria DeWitt Jesup Fund, 1951; acquired from The Museum of Modern Art, Lillie P. Bliss Collection (detail)

Odilon Redon, “Etruscan Vase With Flowers”, (1900-1910), Metropolitan Museum of Art, Maria DeWitt Jesup Fund, 1951; acquired from The Museum of Modern Art, Lillie P. Bliss Collection (detail)

Odilon Redon, “Etruscan Vase With Flowers”, (1900-1910), Metropolitan Museum of Art, Maria DeWitt Jesup Fund, 1951; acquired from The Museum of Modern Art, Lillie P. Bliss Collection (detail)

Odilon Redon, “Etruscan Vase With Flowers”, (1900-1910), Metropolitan Museum of Art, Maria DeWitt Jesup Fund, 1951; acquired from The Museum of Modern Art, Lillie P. Bliss Collection (detail)

Odilon Redon, “Etruscan Vase With Flowers”, (1900-1910), Metropolitan Museum of Art, Maria DeWitt Jesup Fund, 1951; acquired from The Museum of Modern Art, Lillie P. Bliss Collection (detail)

Odilon Redon, “Etruscan Vase With Flowers”, (1900-1910), Metropolitan Museum of Art, Maria DeWitt Jesup Fund, 1951; acquired from The Museum of Modern Art, Lillie P. Bliss Collection (detail)

Odilon Redon, “Etruscan Vase With Flowers”, (1900-1910), Metropolitan Museum of Art, Maria DeWitt Jesup Fund, 1951; acquired from The Museum of Modern Art, Lillie P. Bliss Collection (detail)

Odilon Redon, “Etruscan Vase With Flowers”, (1900-1910), Metropolitan Museum of Art, Maria DeWitt Jesup Fund, 1951; acquired from The Museum of Modern Art, Lillie P. Bliss Collection (detail)

Odilon Redon, “Etruscan Vase With Flowers”, (1900-1910), Metropolitan Museum of Art, Maria DeWitt Jesup Fund, 1951; acquired from The Museum of Modern Art, Lillie P. Bliss Collection (detail)

Odilon Redon, “Etruscan Vase With Flowers”, (1900-1910), Metropolitan Museum of Art, Maria DeWitt Jesup Fund, 1951; acquired from The Museum of Modern Art, Lillie P. Bliss Collection (detail)

Odilon Redon, “Etruscan Vase With Flowers”, (1900-1910), Metropolitan Museum of Art, Maria DeWitt Jesup Fund, 1951; acquired from The Museum of Modern Art, Lillie P. Bliss Collection (detail)

Odilon Redon, “Etruscan Vase With Flowers”, (1900-1910), Metropolitan Museum of Art, Maria DeWitt Jesup Fund, 1951; acquired from The Museum of Modern Art, Lillie P. Bliss Collection (detail)

Odilon Redon, “Etruscan Vase With Flowers”, (1900-1910), Metropolitan Museum of Art, Maria DeWitt Jesup Fund, 1951; acquired from The Museum of Modern Art, Lillie P. Bliss Collection (detail)

Odilon Redon, “Etruscan Vase With Flowers”, (1900-1910), Metropolitan Museum of Art, Maria DeWitt Jesup Fund, 1951; acquired from The Museum of Modern Art, Lillie P. Bliss Collection (detail)

Odilon Redon, “Etruscan Vase With Flowers”, (1900-1910), Metropolitan Museum of Art, Maria DeWitt Jesup Fund, 1951; acquired from The Museum of Modern Art, Lillie P. Bliss Collection (detail)

Odilon Redon, “Etruscan Vase With Flowers”, (1900-1910), Metropolitan Museum of Art, Maria DeWitt Jesup Fund, 1951; acquired from The Museum of Modern Art, Lillie P. Bliss Collection (detail)

Odilon Redon, “Etruscan Vase With Flowers”, (1900-1910), Metropolitan Museum of Art, Maria DeWitt Jesup Fund, 1951; acquired from The Museum of Modern Art, Lillie P. Bliss Collection (detail)

Odilon Redon, “Etruscan Vase With Flowers”, (1900-1910), Metropolitan Museum of Art, Maria DeWitt Jesup Fund, 1951; acquired from The Museum of Modern Art, Lillie P. Bliss Collection (detail)

Odilon Redon, “Etruscan Vase With Flowers”, (1900-1910), Metropolitan Museum of Art, Maria DeWitt Jesup Fund, 1951; acquired from The Museum of Modern Art, Lillie P. Bliss Collection (detail)

Odilon Redon, “Etruscan Vase With Flowers”, (1900-1910), Metropolitan Museum of Art, Maria DeWitt Jesup Fund, 1951; acquired from The Museum of Modern Art, Lillie P. Bliss Collection (detail)

Odilon Redon, “Etruscan Vase With Flowers”, (1900-1910), Metropolitan Museum of Art, Maria DeWitt Jesup Fund, 1951; acquired from The Museum of Modern Art, Lillie P. Bliss Collection (detail)

Odilon Redon, “Etruscan Vase With Flowers”, (1900-1910), Metropolitan Museum of Art, Maria DeWitt Jesup Fund, 1951; acquired from The Museum of Modern Art, Lillie P. Bliss Collection (detail)

Odilon Redon, “Etruscan Vase With Flowers”, (1900-1910), Metropolitan Museum of Art, Maria DeWitt Jesup Fund, 1951; acquired from The Museum of Modern Art, Lillie P. Bliss Collection (detail)

Details

• Etruscan Vase with Flowers
• Artist: Odilon Redon (French, Bordeaux 1840–1916 Paris)
• Date: 1900–1910
• Medium: Tempera on canvas
• Dimensions: 32 x 23 1/4 in. (81.3 x 59.1 cm)
• Credit Line: Maria DeWitt Jesup Fund, 1951; acquired from The Museum of Modern Art, Lillie P. Bliss Collection

Sources

1. “Odilon Redon Artist Overview and Analysis”. [Internet]. 2018. TheArtStory.org
   Content compiled and written by Rebecca Seiferle, Edited and published by The Art Story Contributors, Available from: https://www.theartstory.org/artist-redon-odilon.htm (Accessed 14 Sep 2018).
2. Beyond the Visible: The Art of Odilon Redon | MoMA https://www.moma.org/calendar/exhibitions/92, October 30, 2005–January 23, 2006. The Museum of Modern Art, (accessed 13 Sep 2018)
3. Masterpieces of Painting in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, by Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York, N.Y.), page 91, https://books.google.com (accessed Sept. 13, 2018).
4. Myers, Nicole. “Symbolism.” In Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2000–. http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/symb/hd_symb.htm (August 2007), accessed Sept. 13, 2018.
5. Wikipedia contributors, “Odilon Redon,” Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Odilon_Redon&oldid=858285467 (accessed September 14, 2018).

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