Saint George 1905

This murky Saint George on horseback, with the dragon slayed underfoot, seems to emerge from the mists, or from a dream. It's by Odilon Redon, though the date is unknown. Look at how the lines vibrate and flicker! You can feel Redon layering the charcoal, building up tone. The horse and rider become visible, solidifying from the darkness, a dance between revealing and concealing. What do you make of the sunburst behind Saint George? It's almost as if the light is emanating from within him, rather than coming from an external source. Redon was always drawn to the power of suggestion. This is evident when comparing him to his symbolist colleagues, whose work often embraced themes of spirituality, mythology, and the subconscious mind.