It was Ellison who suggested they were prognostic of death.
Edgar Allan Poe: The Domain of Arnheim
Magritte's love for Poe is
elsewhere evidenced by
a painting titled after the
Imp of the Perverse, &
the appearance of Arthur
Gordon Pym on the mantel-
piece in Not to be Reproduced.
One of each of those; but
this is one of nine variants —
oil or gouache — that has
the same title, painted across
twenty eight years. Not to
mention the guest appearance
of the eagle & its nest in
several other paintings. Some
doubt about the date of this
version. I like to think was done
near the end of the artist's life.
May not be true but there are
clues. A candle to light the way,
& the way the bird is poised as
if for take-off, tearing itself out
of a landscape it does not want
anyone else's hand laid upon.
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