Rebus: "No, Morny is not dead for he is marrying again"
1866
From the collection of Cleveland Museum of Art
1866
From the collection of Cleveland Museum of Art
Rebus: "No, Morny is not dead for he is marrying again" is a 1866 by Charles Meryon, a Impressionism work, held at Cleveland Museum of Art.
This sketch shows four small, black-and-white drawings stacked vertically. The top one depicts a shipwreck with waves crashing over a sinking vessel. The second has a village by the water with people and windmills. The third shows a lone ship with a tall mast. The bottom drawing is a fortress with a crowd inside, labeled with French words like *"ration de vin"* and *"du matelot."* The top drawing is marked *"Marechal de l’Empire / Mort fusillé en 1815"*—a reference to a famous military leader executed in 1815. The whole image plays with words and pictures, like a puzzle. If you like this mix of pictures and hidden meanings, look up chiaroscuro next—it’s a technique that uses strong light and dark contrasts, similar to how Meryon plays with shadows here.
