Le Sphynx...mon regard que rien ne peut devier, demeure tendu a travers les choses sur un horizon inaccessible. La Chimere: Moi,Je suis legere et joyeuse (The Sphinx: "My gaze, which nothing can deflect, passes through the things and remains fixed on an inaccessible horizon." The Chimera: "I am weightless and joyful")

Odilon Redon

National Gallery of Art

This is a drawing of a sphinx and a chimera. The drawing depicts two mythical creatures against a textured background. On the left side, the sphinx is presented in a traditional manner, with a human face and shoulders adorned with a headdress, connecting to the body of a lion. On the right, the chimera is depicted as a dark figure with a lion's head, a goat's head emerging from its back, and a serpent's tail. The detailed rendering of the creatures contrasts with the artist's more abstract background, which is filled with lines and shading. The overall composition conveys an encounter between the ancient mythological beings.