A Man of the People, a Savage, from The Juror 1887

Editor: So, here we have Odilon Redon’s lithograph, "A Man of the People, a Savage, from The Juror," created in 1887. The skull emerging from the shadows definitely gives off an eerie, almost dreamlike quality. I'm struck by its simplicity, the stark contrast. What do you see in this piece? Curator: Oh, Redon. Always inviting us into his strange and wonderful nightmares! What I love about this lithograph is its stark beauty – the way he coaxes such delicate gradients from black ink. It feels ancient, like a relic unearthed from a long-forgotten civilization, doesn't it? Editor: Absolutely, there's a timeless quality to it. What do you mean by a "relic?" Curator: Well, you have this rather imposing skull emerging from inky darkness. Given the title, "A Man of the People, a Savage," the piece can also be interpreted as a macabre sociopolitical critique of societal judgment, you know? Almost poking fun at the old French leadership and how the common man has been brought so low! Is it a statement? A sardonic joke? And what of Redon himself in this narrative? Did he consider himself "a savage?" Oh the questions it conjures... Editor: I hadn’t thought about that. The "savage" idea really resonates with the dark shadows, almost suggesting something untamed, primal. Do you think Redon saw something beautiful in the macabre? Curator: I think Redon found beauty everywhere, even in the unsettling corners of our minds. He embraced the unseen, the unspoken, that whisper in the shadows, that only artists and children really know are there! That skull isn't just death, it is part of life; isn't it? Editor: I guess that means he understood death wasn't so scary after all. Curator: Exactly! I hope that one day you see the shadows dance and light plays and then… ah then, the work, like this image here before us, may come to life.