Caliban (1881)

Odilon Redon is the artist behind "Caliban", dated 1881. Context for 1881: Japanese prints reached Europe in large numbers and influenced many artists, while photography changed what painting needed to do. In the 1890s, colour lithography and Art Nouveau made the illustrated poster a celebrated art form. Illustration in brief: Illustration serves a text or a story, a tradition that runs from decorated medieval manuscripts to printed book plates, magazines, and posters. The late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries are often described as a golden age of book and magazine illustration. It is listed in the Illustration collection. The image is in portrait orientation.

Buying "Caliban" means getting a digital file, not a physical print: Digital JPEG + PDF files, 300 DPI, delivered by email once payment is confirmed. A 300 DPI file is intended for printing at home or at a local print shop, where you can choose a matte, satin, or fine-art paper to suit the room. A portrait format suits narrow wall spaces, hallways, and the area beside a door or window. A simple frame with a mat often helps an image settle comfortably into a room. Choosing a standard frame size and printing to fit it often saves the cost of custom framing. Screens and printers render colour differently, so a small test print is a sensible way to check tones before committing to a large size. Matte and fine-art papers reduce glare in bright rooms, while glossy papers give stronger contrast and deeper blacks.

French, 1840–1916

If you like the visual language of Odilon Redon, explore more works by the same artist in our collection.