Ophelia 1905

Odilon Redon made this Ophelia with pastels, and immediately I’m drawn into the way he makes color so physical. It’s like he’s sculpting with light itself. The surface has a velvety texture. You can imagine the chalky feel of the pastel sticks dragging across the paper. Look closely at how the colors are layered. Redon doesn't blend them perfectly, instead, he lets the individual strokes remain visible. It’s in the details; the way he captures the delicate light filtering through the water is just gorgeous. I’m thinking especially of the bottom left corner, where the blue meets the black in these short, feathery strokes which suggests movement and depth. Redon reminds me a little of Guston; both explore the possibilities of color and form without getting bogged down in representation. It’s about finding the emotional truth, not the literal one. And that’s what makes art so endlessly fascinating.