Medusa

A prolific writer, poet, and artist, Jean Delville was a leading figure of the Idealist branch of Belgian Symbolism, intent on painting visionary ideas instead of images inspired by the real world. Here, he depicted Medusa, a figure from Greek mythology often described as having venomous snakes for hair. According to myth, those who gazed into Medusa’s eyes turned to stone. In Delville’s drawing, Medusa’s hypnotic eyes stare out from a web of sinuous liquids, serpents, smoke, and a blue veil that partially obscures her face.