And I, John, Saw the Holy City, New Jerusalem, Coming Down from God and out of Heaven - Odilon Redon

A haunting lithograph from Odilon Redon's 1899 Apocalypse series, depicting a celestial vision through masterful use of light and shadow.

This lithograph is part of the Apocalypse de Saint Jean series, a collection of twelve prints produced by Odilon Redon in 1899. The work depicts a visionary scene from the Book of Revelation, where the celestial city descends from the heavens. Redon, a central figure in the Symbolist movement, often explored themes of dreams, the subconscious, and religious mysticism. His approach to the subject matter avoids literal representation, opting instead for an atmospheric, ethereal quality that suggests the supernatural nature of the event. The composition is divided into two distinct zones. In the upper portion, the architectural form of the New Jerusalem appears as a ghostly, luminous structure, rendered with delicate, light-filled lines that contrast with the surrounding darkness. Below, a heavy, dark mass dominates the foreground, grounding the image and providing a sense of scale against the celestial apparition. The use of lithography allows Redon to manipulate light and shadow with great precision, creating a grainy, textured surface that enhances the dreamlike quality of the print. Redon was known for his 'noirs', a series of charcoal drawings and lithographs that utilised a wide range of black tones to evoke emotional responses. This print exemplifies his mastery of the medium, as he balances deep, velvety blacks with subtle grey washes and white highlights. The work does not attempt to document the biblical narrative in a traditional sense, but rather captures the psychological impact of the vision. By focusing on the contrast between the solid, earthly foreground and the intangible, radiant city above, Redon invites the viewer to contemplate the boundary between the physical world and the spiritual realm. The inclusion of the French text at the base of the print provides a direct link to the source material, anchoring the abstract visual elements within the context of the biblical text.