Holy Family with Deer 1871

Rodolphe Bresdin created this intricate etching, "Holy Family with Deer," at an unknown date. Bresdin, a contemporary of the Realist painter Gustave Courbet, lived through the turbulent years of France in the 19th century, marked by revolutions and social upheaval. Here, Bresdin reimagines the traditional Christian subject. We see Mary, Joseph, and the infant Jesus not in a pastoral landscape, but nestled within an almost impenetrable forest. The Holy Family is accompanied not by angels, but by wild deer. In Christian art, the deer is a symbol of religious devotion. But the deer also evokes vulnerability and the wilderness, a symbol of being outside the bounds of civilization. Bresdin was known for his bohemian lifestyle. In "Holy Family with Deer" he seems to suggest an alternative narrative, one where holiness is found in the margins, in the wild, and among the outcasts. How do you feel about seeing a biblical narrative in this dark and intricate setting?