Ah

Ah, each evening, to surrender to sweet embraceable night.

Gustave Moreau — Night

Similarity to A Peri

The previous post of Moreau's Peri reminded me of John Duncan's painting of Heptu Bidding Farewell to the City of Obb, painted in 1909, shown below. Sure enough, there is plenty of similarity. Heptu is riding a hippogriff, with the body of a horse, head and wings of an eagle and the tail of a serpent. It was about this time that Duncan visited Paris galleries, seeking out the work of Moreau. They were both symbolists and had similar interests.

'Duncan wished he could find a way whereby he could express the sense of wonder and naturalness he saw in Moreau's work. He wanted to paint in a way similar to the way Moreau worked . . .'   

— John Kemplay

Peri

You're undoubtedly tired of my touting the print/poster/book store that I frequented in late 60s Chicago, but oh I got a lot of great things there. Below is a small print of A Peri by Gustave Moreau (one of my favorites, as I'm sure you're tired of reading), and below that a large postcard of a beautiful Peri fan. And bottom below is an internet grab of the Moreau painting.

A Peri is supposed to have been descended from fallen angels, which is also a version of lore about the Faerie race.