Strangled woman 1872

Paul Cézanne's oil painting, "Strangled Woman," now at the Musée d'Orsay, depicts a scene of violence. Figures surround a central woman, seemingly lifeless, an image fraught with tension. The motif of the murdered woman echoes through art history, from ancient tragedies to Renaissance paintings, each reflecting cultural anxieties about vulnerability. Think of Ophelia floating in the water, or Lucretia taking her own life. These images tap into primal fears of mortality and the fragility of life. The red drapery overhead intensifies the scene, reminiscent of theatrical curtains, drawing us into the drama. Cézanne engages with a timeless theme, presenting it with a visceral, modern sensibility. The cyclical return of such motifs reveals a collective subconscious grappling with the darker aspects of human experience, recurring and evolving through art.