1899
From the collection of Cleveland Museum of Art
The Apocalypse of Saint John is a 1899 by Odilon Redon, a Impressionism work, held at Cleveland Museum of Art.
You see a dark, swirling sky filled with floating eyes, a dragon with seven heads, and a woman wrapped in sunlight. Redon made these prints to match specific verses from the Bible’s Book of Revelation. He wasn’t just illustrating—he was turning ancient visions into dreamlike shapes that feel both eerie and familiar. The series was his last set of lithographs, a quiet goodbye to printmaking. If you like this mix of myth and mood, look up the technique called *sfumato*.
The last of Odilon Redon’s 11 lithographic portfolios, this series relates to the Book of Revelation from the Christian Bible. The subject had been explored throughout art history, allowing the artist to align himself with past masters, such as Albrecht Dürer. Although Redon often vaguely referenced texts, these prints directly illustrate 12 individual passages, including one about a woman clothed with the sun and another focused on a great star falling from heaven. By the time he created this portfolio, Redon’s reputation was well established. The project was published by art dealer Ambroise…
This is one of the last works where Redon experimented with lithograph and all-black medium. In contrast, bright, dazzling colors characterize his late works.
Read the full account in the museum source.
Born Bertrand-Jean Redon on 20 April 1840 in Bordeaux, the artist adopted the name Odilon from his mother, Marie-Odile.
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