The Haunting (Hantise) 1893

Odilon Redon created this lithograph, "The Haunting", using charcoal and stumping. Here, we see a woman walking away from a winged figure, a symbol laden with evolving meanings across time. Wings, originally emblems of divine messengers, reappear throughout art history, morphing from signs of spiritual ascension to darker, more ambiguous forms. Consider the winged demons of medieval art, embodiments of temptation and inner turmoil. In Redon’s time, wings take on a psychological dimension. They become symbols of repressed desires or haunting memories. Note how the winged figure gently touches the woman's shoulder. It speaks to our collective memory of the angel of death, yet here, the gesture seems more intimate, the emotion complex. Redon taps into our subconscious, creating a powerful image that leaves us with a lingering sense of disquiet. The past is never truly gone, it resurfaces in unexpected forms, forever shaping our present.