Alphabet de la Tête

Léon-Victor Dupré

MEDIUMOil on canvas
DIMENSIONS55 × 46 cm (21 5/8 × 23 1/4 in.)
LOCATIONArt Institute of Chicago
COLLECTIONModern Art
CULTURERomania
CREDIT LINEGift of Albert Robin

This striking painting presents a disembodied head covered in an enigmatic alphabet, inviting you to decipher its hidden meaning and contemplate the language of thought itself.

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ABOUT THIS WORK

A jarring, disembodied head floats against a dark background in this painting, its features starkly outlined. The head, shown in profile, appears almost sculpted, with a pronounced brow and an elongated nose. Instead of skin and hair, the surface of the head is covered in a jumble of letters and symbols, as if a forgotten alphabet or a secret code has been etched onto its form. This work, titled "Alphabet de la Tête," was created in 1938, placing it firmly within the Surrealist movement which delighted in the irrational and the dreamlike. The artist, Léon-Victor Dupré, was born in 1816 and died in 1879, making the 1938 date of this work implausible for him. This suggests the painting is by a different artist with the same name, or perhaps a descendant. Regardless of its maker, this painting challenges our understanding of portraiture and identity, inviting us to decode the language of the mind itself.

ART MOVEMENTS
Barbizon school
LOOK CLOSER

What to Notice

1

Look closely at the letters and symbols covering the head's surface.

2

Observe the head's stark profile and sculptural quality.

3

Notice the dark, ambiguous background that isolates the floating head.

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Audio Deep Dive

This striking painting presents a disembodied head covered in an enigmatic alphabet, inviting you to decipher its hidden meaning and contemplate the language o…

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THE ARTIST
Léon-Victor Dupré 1816–1879 · France

Léon-Victor Dupré, a French landscape painter, followed in his brother Jules's footsteps, capturing the quiet beauty of the French countryside.

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