Two trees

Odilon Redon

• Original Title: Deux arbres
• Date: 1875
• Style: Symbolism
• Genre: landscape
• Media: charcoal, paper
• Tag: forests-and-trees
• Dimensions: 63.5 x 49.5 cm

In this drawing there is high contrast between the lighest parts (the top of the trees and the path) and the darkest parts (the gap between and either side of the two trees). The eyes are instantly drawn to the lighest parts and then travel down to the dark areas, drawing you in and making you wonder what lies beyond the gaps. The high contrast is what gives the drawing atmosphere.

Another drawing I have discovered by the same artist:

Death: My Irony Surpasses all Else!, lithograph by Odilon Redon, 1889; in the National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.Courtesy National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C., Rosenwald Collection, 1943.3.7381,

Again using high contrast, with thick black areas to create drama, and the lightest areas illuminating parts of the body, face and hair.

Lori McNee, of the Artists Network, states that considering value is important because:

• Value is used to create a focal point within a painting or drawing.
• The human eye is immediately drawn to a light element against a dark element. This creates, the focal point of interest.
• To create the illusion of depth, gradations of value are also used.
• Areas of light and dark give a three-dimensional illusion of form to subject matter.
• https://www.artistsnetwork.com/art-subjects/understanding-value-and-tone-for-better-painting/

Understanding Value and Tone for Better Painting

In both of Redons’ drawings, the shadow and light and gradations of tone bring the trees and the human figure into three-dimensional forms.