Brief aan Héloïse Bernard-Bodin Possibly 1899

This letter, penned by Emile Bernard in July 1899, presents itself as a simple missive, yet within its lines lurks a potent symbol: pestilence. The mention of the plague, both in Egypt and India, evokes a long history of fear and societal upheaval. This motif is not isolated; it echoes through art history in works like Poussin's "The Plague at Ashdod" and Bocklin's "The Plague," where death and disease are depicted as tangible forces. Here, the plague acts as a powerful metaphor for unseen anxieties. Much like the *Urbild* - the primal form of an image - the plague resurfaces across time, each instance colored by its context. The emotional weight of this symbol is immense, tapping into our collective memory of suffering and mortality. The letter is not merely a record of events but a vessel carrying deeply ingrained cultural fears.