“La Douleur” (“Sorrow”), painted by Paul Cézanne in 1869, powerfully conveys the loneliness and despair that often accompany grief. The painting depicts Mary Magdalene slumped over the distorted body of Christ, her posture, expression, and hand placement deeply evocative of sorrow. The gruesome reality of death is emphasized through the stark depiction of Christ’s skull. Mary appears entirely alone in her mourning. Suspended above her are three unlit lightbulbs—a jarringly out-of-place yet symbolic detail. Within the biblical context, these extinguished bulbs may represent the absence of the Holy Spirit or the extinguishing of hope she feels in this moment of loss. She sits shrouded in a black void, suggesting the emotional emptiness and isolation that grief can bring. “La Douleur” is currently housed in the Musée d’Orsay in Paris, France.
