La Souffrance 

Odilon Redon rendered this pastel artwork, titled 'La Souffrance', with a focus on the emotional weight of its subject. The woman's clasped hands, downcast eyes, and draped veil are visual symbols of mourning and resignation. This posture of grief echoes across time and cultures, appearing in ancient sculptures of mourning figures. We see it echoed again in the Renaissance, in depictions of the Virgin Mary grieving her son. Consider how the "pietà" motif uses similar gestures to convey profound sorrow. This visual language taps into a collective memory of suffering, resonating deeply with our own subconscious understanding of grief. Redon presents an image that transcends individual experience, speaking to the universal human condition of pain. This motif doesn't just disappear; it resurfaces, evolves, and is perpetually reinterpreted in the tapestry of human expression.