Odilon Redon

Odilon Redon combined observation of nature with fantastic imagery. As a young man he met the botanist Armand Clavaud, who encouraged his interest in plants. Charcoal drawings and lithographs of unusual creatures first established his reputation. Later he increasingly used pastel and paint, depicting flowers and mythological subjects. In his bouquets recognisable plants coexist with imagined forms, and colour operates more freely than in conventional botanical illustration.