‘I have made an art according to myself. I have done it with eyes open to the marvels of the visible world and, whatever anyone might say, always careful to obey the laws of nature and life.’
Fleurs sur fond bleu (fragment) is a lyrical celebration of colour and form testament to Odilon Redon’s unique visual language and symbolist beliefs. An array of flowers blooms from a rich profusion of blue pastel. Flowers had long inspired Redon who had been influenced by his friendship with Armand Clavaud, a botanist who introduced the artist to Baudelaire’s Les Fleurs du Mal. In the present work, Redon places his flowers within an indeterminate setting, disconnected from the specificities of time and place. This dreamlike space lends the flowers an unearthly quality and hints towards an unseen spiritualism indicative of the artist’s integral involvement within the Symbolist movement. Flowers are one of the central symbols in Redon’s art and here they portray the signature qualities that would lead art critic Albert Flament to later remark: ‘M. Odilon Redon is a painter of flowers as they are seen in dreams. They do not flourish under the rays of the sun. Their middays are moonlight.’ (quoted by M.-A. Stevens in "Redon's artistic and critical position", in Odilon Redon, 1840-1916 (exhibition catalogue), Chicago, 1994, pp. 296-297).
‘Flowers, lying at the confluence of two streams, that of representation and that of memory’
In addition to Redon’s signature floral iconography, colour is another central subject of Fleurs sur fond bleu (fragment). A spray of vibrant orange flowers erupting into the composition complements the always oneiric quality of the blue pigment and imbues the work with an energy of possibility and fluctuation.
The present work is testament to the keen eye and impeccable taste of its former owner, the fabric designer and founding editor of the legendary design bible World of Interiors, Min Hogg. Hogg became a style arbiter renowned for her appreciation of colour and effortlessly chic visual arrangements: ‘I don’t decorate; I just put things together’. Hogg had always had an excellent eye for design, having grown up under the influence of her mother who decorated their family home, a villa in John Nash’s Regent’s Park development. Together, Hogg and her mother often visited museums and marveled at the interior design and architecture of British stately homes. Hogg further honed her artistic appreciation whilst studying interior design at the Central School of Arts (now known as Central Saint Martins) in London where she studied under Terence Conran. After working as a journalist for several prominent publications Hogg answered an anonymous advertisement for editor of an international arts and interiors magazine, a decision that would evolve into the creation of the renowned World of Interiors.
Fleurs sur fond bleu (fragment) was purchased by Min Hogg from Roland, Browse & Delbanco in London in around 1960 and the work has remained in the family collection since then. This year marks the first in over sixty years that this beautiful work by Redon comes onto the market.