Odilon Redon

“My drawings inspire, and are not to be defined. They place us, as does music, in the ambiguous realm of the undetermined.” Odilon Redon - a French, symbolist painter - began his career as an artist after failing to pass the entrance exams to become an architect. He started working with charcoal before evolving to brightly colored pastels and oils later in his career. His works - which have been described as a blend of nightmares and dreams - include fantastical figures, animals, and scenes from his imagination. Although a large body of his works are dark in color and even subject matter, Redon’s paintings were meant to portray “the triumph of light over darkness”.