FRONTISPIECEFRONTISPIECEFrom "A Nocturne of Chopin"
A good deal has been made out of Beardsley's love of dark rooms and lamp light, but this has been grossly exaggerated. He had no great faith in north lights and studio paraphernalia, so necessary for those who use mediums other than his own. He would sometimes draw on a perfectly flat table, facing the light, which would fall directly on the paper, the blind slightly lowered.
The sources of Beardsley's inspiration have led critics into grievous errors. He was accused of imitating artists, some of whose work he had never seen, and of whose names he was ignorant at the time the alleged plagiarism was perpetrated—Félicien Rops may be mentioned as an instance. Beardsley contrived a style long before he came across any modern French illustration. He was innocent of either Salon, the Rosicrucians, and the Royal Academy alike; but his own influence on the Continent is said to be considerable. That he borrowed freely and from every imaginable master, old and new,is, of course, obvious. Eclectic is certainly applicable to him. But what he took he endowed with a fantastic and fascinating originality; to some image or accessory, familiar to anyone who has studied the old masters, he added the touch of modernity which brings them nearer to us, and reached refinements never thought of by the old masters. Imagination is the great pirate of art, and with Beardsley becomes a pretext for invention.
Prior to 1891 his drawings are interesting only for their precocity; they may be regarded, as one of his friends has said, more as a presage than a precedent. You marvel, on realizing the short interval which elapsed between their production and the masterpieces of his maturity. His first enthusiasm was for the work of the Italian primitives, as Mr Charles Whibley says, distinguished "for its free and flowing line." Even at a later time, when he devoted himself to eighteenth century models and ideals, his love of Andrea Mantegna never deserted him. He always kept reproductions from Mantegna at his side, and declared that he never ceased to learn secrets from them. In the "Litany of Mary Magdalen" and the twoversions of "Joan of Arc" this influence is very marked. A Botticelli phase followed, and though afterwards discarded, was reverted to at a later period. The British Museum and the National Gallery were at first his only schools of art. As a matter of course, Rossetti and Burne-Jones, but chiefly through photographs and prints, succeeded in their turn; the influence of Burne-Jones lasting longer than any other.
Fairly drugged with too much observation of old and modern masters, he entered Professor Brown's art school, where he successfully got rid of much that was superfluous. The three months' training had the most salutary effect. He now took the advice attributed to Burne-Jones, and unlearned much of his acquired pedantry. The mere penmanship which disfigured some of his early work entirely disappeared. His handling became finer, his drawing less timid. The sketch ofMolière, it may be interesting to note, belongs to this period of his art.
Chopin. Ballade III. Op. 47Chopin. Ballade III. Op. 47Reproduced by permission of Charles Holme, Esqre.
A few months afterwards, he commenced the "Morte d'Arthur." Suggested and intended to rival the volumes of the Kelmscott Press, it ishis most popular and least satisfactory performance. Still the borders have far more variety and invention than those of Morris; the intricate splendours of mediæval manuscripts are intelligently imitated or adapted. The initial- and tail-pieces are delightful in themselves, and among the most exquisite of his grotesques and embellishments. But the popularity of the book was due to its lack of originality, not to its individuality. Mediævalism for the middle classes always ensures an appreciative audience. Oddly enough, Morris was said to be annoyed by the sincerest form of flattery. Perhaps he felt that every school of art comes to an end with the birth of the founder, and that Beardsley was only exercising himself in an alien field of which Morris himself owned the tithe. At all events it is not unlikely that Beardsley aroused in the great poet and decorator the same suspicion that he had undoubtedly done in Watts.
The "Morte d'Arthur" may be said, for convenience, to close Aubrey Beardsley's first period; but he modified his style during the progress of the publication, and there is no unity of intention in his types or scheme ofdecoration. He was gravitating Japanwards. He began, however, his so-called Japanesques long before seeing any real Japanese art, except what may be found in the London shop windows on cheap trays or biscuit-boxes. He never thought seriously of borrowing from this source until some one not conversant with Oriental art insisted on the resemblance of his drawings to Kakemonos. It was quite accidental. Beardsley was really studying with great care and attention the Crivellis in the National Gallery; their superficial resemblance to Japanese work occasioned an error from which Beardsley, quick to assimilate ideas and modes of expression, took a suggestion, unconsciously and ignorantly offered, and studied genuine examples. "Raphael Sanzio" (first version) was produced prior to this incident, and "Madame Cigale's Birthday Party" immediately afterwards. His emulation of the Japanese never left him until the production of the Savoy Magazine. In my view this was the only bad artistic influence which ever threatened to endanger his originality, or permanently vitiate his manner. The free use of Chinese ink, together with his intellectual vitality, savedhim from "succumbing to Japan," to use Mr Pennell's excellent phrase.
THE BARON'S PRAYERTHE BARON'S PRAYERFrom "The Rape of the Lock"
A series of grotesques to decorate some rather silly anthologies produced in the same year as the "Morte d'Arthur" are marvels of ingenuity, and far more characteristic. With them he began a new period, throwing over the deliberate archaism and mediævalism, of which he began to tire. In the illustrations to "Salomé," he reached the consummation of the new convention he created for himself; they are, collectively, his masterpiece. In the whole range of art there is nothing like them. You can trace the origin of their development, but you cannot find anything wherewith to compare them; they are absolutely unique. Before commencing "Salomé" two events contributed to give Beardsley a fresh impetus and stimulate his method of expression: a series of visits to the collection of Greek vases in the British Museum (prompted by an essay of Mr D. S. McColl), and to the famous Peacock Room of Mr Whistler, in Prince's Gate—one the antithesis of Japan, the other of Burne-Jones. Impressionable at all times to novel sensations, his artistic perceptions vibrated witha new and inspired enthusiasm. Critical appreciation under his pen meant creation. From the Greek vase painting he learned that drapery can be represented effectually with a few lines, disposed with economy, not by a number of unfinished scratches and superfluous shading. If the "Salomé" drawings have any fault at all, it is that the texture of the pictures suggests some other medium than pen and ink, as Mr Walter Crane has pointed out in his other work. They are wrought rather than drawn, and might be designs for the panel of a cabinet, for Limoges or Oriental enamel. "The Rape of the Lock" is, therefore, a more obvious example of black and white art. Beardsley's second period lasted until the fourth volume of the Yellow Book, in which the "Wagnerites" should be mentioned as one of the finest. In 1896 Beardsley, many people think to the detriment of his style, turned his attention to the eighteenth century, in the literature of which he was always deeply interested. Eisen, Moreau, Watteau, Cochin, Pietro Longhi, now became his masters. The alien romantic art of Wagner often supplied the theme and subject. The level of excellence sustained throughout the Savoy Magazineis extraordinary, in view of the terrible state of his health. His unexampled precision of line hardly ever falters; and while his composition gains in simplicity, his capacity for detail has not flagged. It is, perhaps, an accident that in his most pathetic drawing, "The Death of Pierrot," his hand seems momentarily to have lost its cunning. The same year he gave us "The Rape of the Lock," regarded by some artists as the testament of his genius; and an even more astonishing set of drawings to the "Lysistrata" of Aristophanes. These are grander than the "Rape of the Lock," and larger in treatment than anything he ever attempted. Privately issued, Beardsley was able to give full rein to a Rabelaisian fantasy, which he sometimes cultivated with too great persistence. Irritated by what he considered as over-niceness in some of his critics, he seemed determined to frighten his public. There is nothing unwholesome or suggestive about the "Lysistrata" designs: they are as as frank, free, and outspoken as the text. For the countrymen of Chaucer to simulate indignation about them can only be explained "because things seen are greater than things heard." Yet, when an artist frankly dealswith forbidden subjects, the old canons regular of English art begin to thunder, the critics forget their French accent; the old Robert Adam, which is in all of us, asserts himself; we fly for the fig-leaves. A real artist, Beardsley has not burdened himself with chronology or archæology. Conceived somewhat in the spirit of the eighteenth century, the period of graceful indecency, there is here, however, an Olympian air, a statuesque beauty, only comparable to the antique vases. The illusion is enhanced by the absence of all background, and this gives an added touch of severity to the compositions.
Throughout 1896 the general tendency his style remains uniform, though without sameness. He adapted his technique to the requirements of his subject. Mindful of the essential, rejecting the needless, he always realized his genius and its limitations. From the infinite variety of the Savoy Magazine it is difficult to choose any of particular importance: for his elaborate manner, the first plate to "Under the Hill"; and in a simpler style, the fascinating illustration to his own poem, "The Barber"; "Ave Atque Vale" and "The Death of Pierrot" have, besides, a human interestover and above any artistic quality they possess. For the "Volpone" drawings Beardsley again developed his style, and seeking for new effects, reverted to pure pencil work. The ornate, delicate initial letters, all he lived to finish, must be seen in the originals before their sumptuous qualities, their solemn melancholy dignity, their dexterous handling, can be appreciated. The use of a camel's-hair brush for the illustrations to "Mademoiselle de Maupin," one of his last works, should be noted, as he so rarely used one. Beardsley's invention never failed him, so that it is almost impossible to take a single drawing, or set of drawings, as typical of his art. Each design is rather a type of his own intellectual mood.
THE BATTLE OF BEAUX AND BELLESTHE BATTLE OF BEAUX AND BELLESFrom "The Rape of the Lock"
If the history of grotesque remains to be written, it is already illustrated by his art. A subject little understood, it belongs to the dim ways of criticism. There is no canon or school, and the artist is allowed to be wilful, untrammelled by rule or precedent. True grotesque is not the art either of primitives or decadents, but that of skilled and accomplished workmen who have reached the zenith of a peculiar convention, however confined and limited that conventionmay be. Byzantine art, one of our links with the East, should some day furnish us with a key to a mystery which is now obscured by symbolists and students of serpent worship. The Greeks, with their supreme sanity and unrivalled plastic sense, afford us no real examples, though their archaic art is often pressed into the category. Beardsley, who received recognition for this side of his genius, emphasized the grotesque to an extent that precluded any popularity among people who care only for the trivial and "pretty." In him it was allied to a mordant humour, a certain fescennine abstraction which sometimes offends: this, however, does not excuse the use of the word "eccentric," more misapplied than any word in the English language, except perhaps "grotesque" and "picturesque." All great art is eccentric to the conservative multitude. The decoration on the Parthenon was so eccentric that Pheidias was put in prison. The works of Whistler and Burne-Jones, once derided as eccentric, are now accepted as the commencement of great traditions. All future art will be dubbed eccentric, trampled on, and despised; even as the first tulip that blossomed in England wasrooted out and burnt for a worthless weed by the conscientious Scotch gardener.
A DESIGN FROM 'LYSISTRATA'A DESIGN FROM 'LYSISTRATA'
To compare Beardsley with any of his contemporaries would be unjust to them and to him. He belonged to no school, and can leave no legend, in the sense that Rossetti, Whistler, and Professor Legros have done; he proclaimed no theory; he left no counsel of perfection to those who came after him. In England and America a horde of depressing disciples aped his manner with a singular want of success; while admirable and painstaking artists modified their own convictions in the cause of unpopularity with fatal results. The sensuous charm of Beardsley's imagination and his mode of expression have only a superficial resemblance to the foreign masters of black and white. He continued no great tradition of the 'sixties; has nothing in common with the inventive and various genius of Mr Charles Ricketts; nothing of the pictorial propriety that distinguishes the work of his friend, Mr Pennell, or the homogeneous congruity of Boyd Houghton, Charles Keene, and Mr Frederic Sandys. He made use of different styles where other men employed different mediums. Unperplexed by paintingor etching or lithography, he was satisfied with the simplest of all materials, attaining therewith unapproachable executive power. Those who cavil at his flawless technique ignore the specific quality of drawing characterising every great artist. The grammar of art exists only to be violated. Its rules can be learnt by anyone. Those who have no artistic perception invariably find fault with the perspective, just as those who cannot write a well-balanced sentence are always swift to detect faults in grammar or spelling. There are, of course, weaknesses in the extremities of Beardsley's figures—the hands and feet being interruptions rather than continuations of the limbs. Occasional carelessness in this respect is certainly noticeable, and the structure of his figures is throughout capricious. It was no fault in his early work; the hands and feet in the "Joan of Arc," if crude and exaggerated, being carefully modelled. While the right hand of "Salomé" in "The Dancer's Reward," grasping the head of the Baptist, is perfectly drawn, the left is feeble, when examined closely. For sheer drawing nothing can equal the nude figure in the colophon to "Salomé." The outstretched, quivering handsofAli Babaare intentionally rendered larger than proportion allows, to render dramatic expression, not reality. For the purpose of effect he adapted proportions, realizing that perfect congruity and reality are irreconcilable. None of the figures in the dramatic "Battle of Beaux and Belles" could sit on the fallen chair in the foreground.
There is no need to disturb ourselves with hopes and fears for the estimation with which posterity will cherish his memory; art history cannot afford to overlook him; it could hardly resist the pretext of moralising, expatiating and explaining away so considerable a factor in the book illustration of the nineties. As a mere comment on the admirations of the last twenty years of the nineteenth century, Beardsley is invaluable; he sums up all the delightful manias, all that is best in modern appreciation—Greek vases, Italian primitives, the "Hypnerotomachia," Chinese porcelain, Japanese Kakemonos, Renaissance friezes, old French and English furniture, rare enamels, mediæval illumination, thedébonnairemasters of the eighteenth century, the English pre-Raphaelites. There are differences of kind in æsthetic beauty, and for Beardsley itwas the marriage of arabesque to figures and objects comely or fantastic, or in themselves ugly. For hitherto the true arabesque abhorred the graven image made of artists' hands. To future draughtsmen he will have something of the value of an old master, studied for that fastidious technique which critics believed to be a trick; and collectors of his work may live to be rallied for their taste; but the wheat and the chaff contrive to exist together through the centuries.
A passing reference should be made to the Beardsley of popular delusion. A student of Callot and Hogarth, he took suggestions from the age in which he lived and from the literature of English and French contemporaries, but with no implicit acceptance of the tenets of any groups or schools which flutter the dove-cots of Fleet Street. He stood apart, independent of the shibboleths of art and literature, with the grim and sometimes mocking attention of a spectator. He revealed rather than created a feminine type, offering no solution for the problems of Providence.
D'ALBERT IN SEARCH OF IDEALSD'ALBERT IN SEARCH OF IDEALSFrom "Mademoiselle de Maupin." Reproduced from the original in the possession of Mrs. Bealby Wright
Applying the epithet "original" to an art so intensely reminiscent, so ingeniously retrospective,might seem paradoxical to those unacquainted with Beardsley's more elegant achievements. His is not the originality of Corot and Whistler, with a new interpretation of nature, another scheme of art and decoration, but rather the scholarly originality of the Carracci—a scholarship grounded on a thousand traditions and yet striking an entirely new note in art. In his imagination, his choice of motive, his love for inanimate nature, his sentiment for accessory,—rejected by many modern artists, still so necessary to the modern temper,—his curious type, which quite overshadowed that of the pre-Raphaelites, the singular technical qualities at his command, Beardsley has no predecessors, no rivals. Who has ever managed to suggest such colour in masses of black deftly composed? Reference to the text is unnecessary to learn that the hair of Herodias was purple. His style was mobile, dominating over, or subordinate to the subject, as his genius dictated. He twisted human forms, some will think, into fantastic peculiar shapes, becoming more than romantic—antinomian. He does not appeal to experience but to expression. The tranquil trivialities of what is usuallyunderstood by the illustration of books had no meaning for him; and before any attempt is made to discriminate and interpret the spirit, the poetical sequence, the literary inspiration which undoubtedly existed throughout his work, side by side with technical experiments, his exemption from the parallels of criticism must be remembered duly.
1.A Carnival.Long procession of many figures in fifteenth and sixteenth century costume. Water-colour drawing. Unpublished. Given by the artist to his grandfather, the late Surgeon-Major William Pitt.c.1880.
2.The Jackdaw of Rheims, set of illustrations to the poem. Unpublished.c.1884.
3.Virgil's "Æneid,"nine comic illustrations to Book II. The title-page, written in rough imitation of printing, with the Artist's naïf and inaccurate spelling, is as follows:—Illustrationes de | liber Secundus | Æneidos | Publius Wirgius Maronis| by | Beardslius | de | Brightelmstoniensis. The illustrations are entitled:——
I.Laocoon hurleth his spear against the horse.
II.Laocoon and son crunched up.
III.Little July tries to keep up with Papa. Old Father Anchises sitteth on Papa's shoulders and keeps a good look-out.
IV.Parvi Iulus.
V.Helen.
VI.Panthus departs, bag and baggage.
VII.Sinon telleth his tale unto King Priam.
VIII. One of the cinders of Illim.
IX. (No title.) The drawing, to illustrate two comic verses written at the top of the paper, represents Æneas being carried up into the air by means of a balloon attached to his helmet.
All the above are drawn in ordinary ink upon plain white paper of the kind used for rough work at the school, and all are of uniform size, 7-1/4 × 5 inches, except No. 9, which is on a double-size sheet, measuring 7-1/4 × 10 inches. Unpublished. (Property of H. A. Payne, Esq.) September to December 1886.
4.Virgil's "Æneid,"nineteen humorous sketches illustrative of Book II., entitled:——
I.Æneas relateth the tale to Dido.
II.Laocoon hurls the spear.
III.Sinon is brought before Priam.
IV.Calchas will not betray anyone.
V."All night I lay hid in a weedy lake."
VI.The Palladium is snatched away.
VII.The Palladium jumpeth.
VIII.Laocoon sacrificeth on the sand.
IX.Sinon opens the bolt.
X.Hector's ghost.
XI.Æneas heareth the clash of arms.
XII.Panthus fleeth.
XIII.Pyrrhus exulteth.
XIV.Death of Priam.
XV.Æneas debateth whether he shall slay Helen.
XVI.Venus appeareth to Æneas.
XVII.Jupiter hurls the lightning.
XVIII.Æneas and company set out from Troy.
XIX.Æneas seeth Creusa's ghost.
The above drawings in ordinary ink are contained in a copy-book, 8 × 6-1/2 inches. Unpublished. Exhibited in London at Carfax & Co.'s Galleries, October 1904. (Property of Harold Hartley, Esq.) End of 1886.
5.The Pope weighs heavily on the Church.Pen-drawing contained in the same copy-book with the last-named.
6.John smiles, a comic illustration to the school history book, representing King John in the act of signing Magna Charta. Pen-drawing on paper 7-1/4 × 5 inches. Unpublished. (Property of H. A. Payne, Esq.)
7.Saint Bradlaugh, M.P., a caricature. Pen-drawing on a half sheet of notepaper. Unpublished. (Property of H. A. Payne, Esq.)
8.Autumn Tints.Caricature in black and white of the artist's schoolmaster, Mr Marshall, expounding to his pupils the beauties of nature. Unpublished. Given to Ernest Lambert, Esq., Brighton,c.1886-7.
Beside the above-named there must have been numbers of such drawings belonging to this early period; for in his schooldays Aubrey Beardsley was, to quote the words of Mr H. A. Payne, "constantly doing these little, rough, humorous sketches, which he gave away wholesale." Many have been destroyed or lost, others dispersed abroad. Thus, for instance, one old Brighton Grammar School boy, C. E. Pitt-Schenkel, told Mr Payne that he was in possession of some, which he took out to South Africa.
9.The Jubilee Cricket Analysis. Eleven tiny pen-and-ink sketches, entitled respectively:——
I.A good bowler.
II.Over.
III.Slip.
IV.Square leg.
V.Shooters.
VI.Caught.
VII.A block.
VIII.A demon bowler.
IX.Stumped.
X.Long leg.
XI.Cutting a ball.
All these subjects being represented, in humorous fashion, by literal equivalents. These drawings, though they cannot pretend to any merit, are notable as the earliest specimens to be published of the artist's work. Together they formed a whole-page photo-lithographic illustration inPast and Present, the Brighton Grammar School Magazine, June 1887.
10.Congreve's"Double Dealer," illustration of a scene from, comprising Maskwell and Lady Touchwood. Pen drawing with sepia wash, on a sheet of paper 13-1/2 × 11 inches. Unpublished. (Property of H. A. Payne, Esq.) Signed and dated June 30, 1888.
11.Holywell Street.Wash drawing. First published inThe Poster, Aug.-Sept. 1898. Republished in "The Early Work of Aubrey Beardsley, with a Prefatory Note by H. C. Marillier." John Lane, March 1899. (Property of Charles B. Cochran, Esq., 1888.)
12.The Pay of the Pied Piper: A Legend of Hamelin Town.Eleven line drawings in illustration of, as follows:——
I.Entrance of Councillors, headed by Beadle carrying a mace. Reproduced inThe Westminster Budget, March 25, 1898.
II.Rats feeding upon a cheese in a dish. Reproduced inWestminster Budget, March 25, 1898.
III.Child climbing into an armchair to escape from the rats. Reproduced inThe Poster, Aug.-Sept. 1898.
IV.The Sitting of the Council, under the presidency of the Burgomaster.
V.Deputation of Ladies.
VI.Two rats on their hind legs, carrying off the Beadle's mace: behind them are three rats running. Reproduced inWestminster Budget, March 25, 1898.
VII.Meeting between the Beadle and the Piper.
VIII.The rats follow the Piper out of the town. Republished inWestminster Budget, March 25, 1898, and inThe Poster, Aug.-Sept. 1898.
IX.Citizens rejoice at the departure of the rats.
X.The Piper is dismissed by the Beadle. Republished inWestminster Budget, March 25, 1898, and also inMagazine of Art, May 1898.
XI.The Piper entices away the children.
The above illustrations vary in size from 3-1/4 × 2-1/2 to 6-1/2 × 4-1/2 inches. They are unsigned, but a prefatory note describes them as being "the perfectly original designs and drawings of a boy now in the school,A. V. Beardsley"; and adds: "Our regret is that, lacking experience in the preparation of drawings for the photo-engraver, the reproductions should fall so far short of the original sketches." Published in the programme and book of words of the Brighton Grammar School Annual Entertainment at the Dome, on Wednesday, Dec, 19, 1888; bound up afterwards withPast and Present, February 1889. Latter part of 1888.
13.A Scrap-Book, size 9-1/2 × 7 inches, the fly-leaf inscribed, in his own writing,A. Beardsley, 6/5/90, presented by the artist's mother to Robert Ross, Esq. Contains the following drawings, mounted as scraps:——
I.Manon Lescaut, three drawings to illustrate different scenes from. Executed with very fine pen and ink, the latter having, as compared with maturer works, a brownish tinge. One of them first appeared in "A Second Book of Fifty Drawings by Aubrey Beardsley" (Leonard Smithers, December 1898), and all three were included in "The Later Work of Aubrey Beardsley" (John Lane, 1901).
II.La Dame aux Camélias. 4-3/8 inches square, pen and brownish ink with wash. First published in "Second Book," and afterwards in "Later Work." This is a totally different design from that which afterwards appeared, with the same title, in "The Yellow Book." See below.
III.Tartarin, two illustrations of, in pencil and colours, size 4-1/8 × 2-3/4 and 4-1/2 × 3-1/2 inches respectively.
IV.La Leçon (Madame Bovary). 5-1/4 × 6-3/4. Chinesewhite and dark sepia wash. First published in "Second Book," and again in "Later Work."
V.L'Abbé Birotteau (Curé de Tours). 3 × 2 inches. Pen-and-ink with wash, on pale greenish paper.
VI.L'Abbé Troubert (Curé de Tours). 5 × 2-3/4 inches. Dark sepia wash.
VII.Madame Bovary. 5-5/8 × 3-1/8 inches. Pencil. First published in "Second Book," and again in "Later Work."
VIII.Sapho (Daudet). Wanting. Over its place has been gummed another drawing, also wanting, its title written at the foot,L'homme qui rit.
IX.Le Cousin Pons. 5-1/8 × 2-3/8 inches. Indian ink.
X.Portrait of Alphonse Daudet. 2-3/4 × 2-3/16 inches. Indian ink on pale blue paper.
XI.Watteau, Ma Cousine (Cousin Pons). 5-1/2 × 2-3/4 inches. Pen-and-ink with wash on pale grey toned paper.
XII.Mademoiselle Gamard (Curé de Tours). 3-1/8 × 2-1/8 inches. Indian ink wash.
XIII.Madame Cibot (Cousin Pons). 4 × 2-7/8 inches. Indian ink wash.
XIV.(Jack) Attendons! 3-5/8 inches high, irregular silhouette. Dark sepia wash.
XV.Jeanne D'Arc, the childhood of. 9 × 3-3/8 inches. Sepia and madder wash on toned paper. First published in "Second Book," again in "Later Work."
XVI.Frontispiece to Balzac's "Contes Drôlatiques." 6-3/4 × 4-1/8 inches. Drawn after the manner ofRichard Doyle. First published in "Second Book," again in "Later Work."
XVII.Phèdre (Act ii. scene 5). 3-7/8 × 3-1/2 inches. Pencil and colours. First published in "Second Book," again in "Later Work."
XVIII.Manon Lescaut, three-quarter length, woman to left, with fan. 5-1/4 × 3-1/2 inches. Water-colour on grey paper. First published in "Second Book," again in "Later Work."
XIX.Beatrice Cenci. 6-1/8 × 2-3/4 inches. Pencil and sepia wash. First published in "Second Book," again in "Later Work."
Unless otherwise stated as above, the works in this collection are unpublished; all were executed 1889-90.
14.Francesca di Rimini(Dante). Head in profile, to left; pencil. First published in "Later Work."
15.Dante at the Court of Can Grande della Scala.Circular design, in pencil. (Property of Miss H. Glover.)
16.Dante in Exile.Dante seated on the left, the words of the Sonnet inscribed on the right, with decorations recalling some design of William Blake's. Signed A.V.B. First published in "Later Work." (Formerly the property of the late Hampden Gurney, Esq.)
17. "I saw three Ships come sailing by on Christmas Day in the Morning." Pencil. Designed as a Christmas card for the late Rev. Alfred Gurney. Published in "Later Work."c.1890-1.
18.Hail Mary.Profile of a head to left. Pencil drawing, 4-1/2 × 5-1/4 inches. First published inThe Studio, May 1898, again in "Early Work." (Property of Frederick H. Evans, Esq.) 1891.
19.Head, three-quarter face to right, with a Wreath of Grapes and Vine Leaves and background of tree trunks. Lead-pencil sketch 5-1/2 × 5-5/8 inches. Unpublished. (Property of John Lane, Esq.)circa1891.
20.Thel Gathering the Lily.Pen-and-ink with water-colour wash. (Formerly the property of Robert Ross, Esq.)
21.Two Figures in a Garret, both seated, a woman haranguing a young man. Ink and wash sketch, 3-1/4 × 4-1/8 inches. Published in "Early Work." (Property of Frederick H. Evans, Esq.)
22.E. Burne-Jones.Portrait sketch in pen-and-ink, with slight wash. A memorandum of Aubrey Beardsley's first call on Sir Edward Burne-Jones, dated Sunday, 12th July 1891, and signed with monogram, A.V.B. Size, 6-3/4 × 4-1/8 inches. Eight copies only. Printed on India paper. Published by James Tregaskis, Caxton Head, High Holborn, in 1899. July 1891.
23.The Witch of Atlas.Pen-and-ink and water-colour wash. First reproduced (lacking ornamental border) in "Second Book," again in "Later Work." (Formerly the property of Robert Ross, Esq.)
24.Molière.Blue water-colour wash. First published in "Later Work." (Formerly the property of Robert Ross, Esq.)
25.Die Götterdämmerung.Decorative composition in white and Indian ink, influenced by Burne-Jones. First published in "Second Book," again in "Later Work." (Formerly the property of Robert Ross, Esq.)
26.Soleil Couchant.Decorative composition in Indian ink. (The motif of the central part was subsequently adapted for a vignette in the "Morte Darthur," Book II. chap. xii.) First published in "Later Work." (Formerly the property of the late Hampden Gurney, Esq.)
27.Tannhâuser.Study for decorative composition, in Indian ink. 5-5/8 × 7-1/2 inches. First published in "Later Work." (Property of Dr Rowland Thurnam.) 1891.
28.Withered Spring.Decorative composition in Indian ink. Catalogued in "Fifty Drawings" as "Lament of the Dying Year." (The motif of the central part was subsequently adapted for a vignette in the "Morte Darthur," Book I. chap. xii.) First published in "Later Work." (Property of Dr Rowland Thurnam.)
29.I.Perseus.Pen-and-ink and light wash. Design for an upright panel, with standing nude figure, above it a frieze of smaller figures. 18 × 6-3/4 inches. First published in "Early Work." (Property of Frederick H. Evans, Esq.)
II.A pencil sketch of two figures, unfinished, on the reverse of the preceding. Published in "Early Work."
30.L'Abbé Mouret.Decorative design for frontispiece of Zola's "La Faute de l'Abbé Mouret." Ink and wash. First published in "Under the Hill." John Lane. 1904. (Property of John Lane, Esq.)
31.Hamlet patris panem Sequitur.Pencil drawing. Printed in red, as frontispiece toThe Bee, the Magazine of the Blackburn Technical School, November 1891; reprinted, in black, in "Second Book," again in "Early Work." Latter part 1891.
32.Perseus and the Monstre.Pencil design, 5-1/2 × 7-1/2 inches. First appeared in illustration of an articleentitled, "The Invention of Aubrey Beardsley," by Aymer Vallance, inThe Magazine of Art, May 1898; again in "Early Work," (Property of Aymer Vallance, Esq.) 1891.
33.The Procession of Jeanne d'Arc.Pencil outline, treatment inspired by Mantegna, 19-1/2 long by 6-1/2 inches high. First published inMagazine of Art, May 1898; again as double page in "Second Book"; again, reduced, in collotype, in "Early Work." (Property of Frederick H. Evans, Esq.) 1891-2.
A pen-and-ink version of the Procession, 30 inches long by 7 high, was made subsequently, about the Spring of 1892, for Robert Ross, Esq. Published inThe Studio; see below.
34.The Litany of Mary Magdalen.Pencil drawing. First published in "Second Book," again in "Later Work." (Formerly Property of More Adey, Esq.) 1892.
35.The Virgin and Lily.Madonna standing in front of a Renaissance niche and surrounded by Saints, among them St John Baptist kneeling. Pencil outline. Reproduced in photogravure in "Later Work." (Formerly the property of the late Rev. Alfred Gurney, afterwards in the possession of his son, the late Hampden Gurney, Esq.)
36.Children Decorating a Terminal God.Pen-and-ink. (Formerly the property of M. Puvis de Chavannes.)
37.Fred Brown, N.E.A.C. Pen-and-ink sketch of the art-master in studio. Signed with monogram A.V.B.First published in "Under the Hill." (Property of Miss Nellie Syrett.)
38.Study of Figures, horizontal fragment from, containing five heads and parts of two more. Pencil. Published in "Under the Hill." (Property of Miss Nellie Syrett.)
39.Portrait of the Artist.Full face. Pen-and-ink. First published in "Second Book," again in "Later Work." (Presented by Robert Ross, Esq., to the British Museum.)
40.Sidonia the Sorceress.A design to illustrate Meinhold's Romance, representing Sidonia, not in religious habit, with the demon-cat, Chim. William Morris's criticism that the face of Sidonia was not pretty enough, and another suggested improvement on the part of a friend of Aubrey Beardsley's, induced him to try to better the picture by altering the hair. The result was so far from satisfactory that it is almost certain that the drawing was destroyed by the artist. First half of 1892.
41.Le Débris d'un Poete.Pen-and-ink. First published in "Aubrey Beardsley," by Arthur Symons (Sign of the Unicorn, London, 1898). (Property of André Raffalovich, Esq.)
42.Incipit Vita Nova.Chinese, white, and Indian ink on brown paper. First published in "Second Book," again in "Later Work." (Property of Messrs Carfax & Co.) 1892.
43.Head of an Angel, in profile, to left, flaming heart held in left hand. Pencil, on a half-sheet of grey notepaper,signed with monogram A.V.B. 5-3/4 × 3-7/8 inches. First published in photogravure "Second Book," again in "Later Work"; also printed in 4-inch square form on card for private distribution, Christmas 1905. (Property of the artist's sister, Mrs George Bealby Wright [Miss Mabel Beardsley].)c.1892.
44.Adoramus Te.Four angels in a circle (7 inches in diameter) playing musical instruments, pencil and coloured chalks. Signed A.V.B. monogram. Designed as a Christmas card for the late Rev. Alfred Gurney. First published in photogravure in "Second Book," again in "Later Work." (Property of Mrs George Bealby Wright.)
45.A Christmas Carol.Two angels, one of them playing a hand-organ, in a circle (7-3/4 inches diameter), pencil, and coloured chalks. Designed as a Christmas card for the late Rev. Alfred Gurney. First published in photogravure in "Second Book," again in "Later Work." Also in photogravure, 3 inches diameter, for private circulation. (Property of Mrs George Bealby Wright.) Christmas, 1892.
46.La Femme Incomprise.Pen-and-ink and wash. First published in the spring number ofTo-Day, 1895; again in theIdlermagazine, March 1897.
47.Sandro Botticelli, three-quarter face to left, pencil, signed with monogram A.V.B.; 14 × 7-3/4 inches; a reconstruction of the Florentine painter's physiognomy from his extant works, to illustrate Aubrey Beardsley's theory that every artist tends to reproduce his own physical type. Presented by the artist to AymerVallance, Esq. First published in theMagazine of Art, May 1898; afterwards in "Early Work."c.1892-3.
48.Raphael Sanzio.Full-length figure, three-quarter face to left, a decorative panel in pen-and-ink, 10-3/4 × 3-7/8 inches, exclusive of border lines. Unpublished. (Property of Messrs Obach & Co.)
49.Cephalus and Procris.Pen-and-ink.
50.Small Bookmarker, woman undressing, a Turkish table in the foreground. Pen-and-ink. First published in "Second Book," again in "Later Work." (Property of Sir William Geary, Bart.) 1893.
51.Hermaphroditus, seated figure, pencil and pale colour tints. Reproduced in colour in "Later Work." (Property of Julian Sampson, Esq.)
52.L'après-midi d'un Faune, par Mallarmé; four designs extra-illustrating a copy of. One of them, a pen-and-ink vignette of a faun, full face, signed with monogram A.V.B., was published in "Second Book." The others unpublished. 1893.
53.Decorative Sketch Design of a Sailing Ship.1-7/8 × 2-1/2 inches. Pen-and-ink on white from the back of a letter to Aymer Vallance, Esq. First published inMagazine of Art, May 1898; again in "Early Work."c.1893.
54.Angel Playing Hand-Organ.Pen-and-ink and slight wash, on pale grey notepaper, from a letter to Aymer Vallance, Esq. First published inMagazine of Art, May 1898; again in "Early Work."c.1893.
55.The Pall Mall Budget, 1893 and 1894.
I.Mr H. A. Jones and his Bauble; pen-and-ink. Feb. 2, 1893, p. 150.
II.The New Coinage.Four designs that were not sent in for competition, p. 154. Another design, embodying a caricature of Queen Victoria, was suppressed.
III."Becket" at the Lyceum.
1. Mr Irving as Becket; wash drawing. Feb. 9th, front page.
2. Master Leo, p. 188.
3. Queen Eleanor, p. 188.
4. Margery, p. 188.
5. The King makes a Move on the Board, p. 188.
6. Miss Terry (as Rosamond), p. 188.
7. Mr Gordon Craig, p. 190.
8. The Composer, p. 190.
IV.
1.The Disappointment of Emile Zola, p. 202.
2.Emile Zola; a portrait, p. 204. (Republished in "Pall Mall Pictures of the Year," 1893, and inThe Studio, June 1893.)
V.Verdi's "Falstaff," at Milan, Feb. 16th.
Initial letter V; pen-and-ink, p. 236.
Portrait of Verdi; ink and wash, p. 236.
VI.Pope Leo XIII.'s Jubilee, Feb. 23rd.
The Pilgrim (old style), p. 270.
The Pilgrim (new style), p. 270.
VII.The Reappearance of Mrs Bancroft.
1. Mr Arthur Cecil (Baron Stein), p. 281.
2. Mrs Bancroft (Lady Fairfax), p. 281.
3. Mr Forbes Robertson (Julian Beauclere), p. 281.
4. Mr Bancroft (Count Orloff), p. 281.
VIII.Caricature of a Golf Player, in classical helmet, March 9th, p. 376.
IX.Orpheus at the Lyceum, March 16th.
1. One of the Spirits, Act II., p. 395.
2. Orpheus (Miss Clara Butt), p. 395.
3. A Visitor at the Rehearsal, p. 395.
4. Some Dresses in the Chorus, p. 395.
X.Portrait of the Late Jules Ferry: wash drawing, March 23rd, p. 435.
XI.Bullet-Proof Uniform: Tommy Atkins thinks it rather fun, March 30, p. 491.
XII.Mr Frederick Harrison's "Ideal Novelist,"April 20, p. 620.
XIII.A New Year's Dream, after studying Mr Pennell's "Devils of Notre Dame." Republished in "Early Work." Jan. 4th, 1894, p. 8.
56.Mr Parnell, sketch portrait of the Irish party leader, head and shoulders, three quarters face to left, pencil, half tone reproduction, 4-3/4 × 3-1/2 inches.
57.I.The Studio.Design for wrapper in two states, the original design containing a seated figure of Pan, omitted in the later version. First state on brown paper. The same, reduced, in black on green, for prospectus, republished inThe Studio, May 1898, and again in "Early Work."
Second state, black on green, also in gold on rough white paper for presentation to Royalty (Nov. 15th, 1893). The same, reduced, and printed in dark green on white, for a prospectus, republished in "Early Work." The same, enlarged and printed in black on light green, for a poster.
The Studio, No. I, April 1893, accompanying an article entitled "A New Illustrator: Aubrey Beardsley," by Joseph Pennell, contained:——
II.Reduced reproduction of the pen-and-ink replica of Jeanne d'Arc procession. Republished as large folding supplement in No. 2.
III.Siegfried, Act II., from the original drawing in line and wash, signed A.V.B., presented by the artist to Sir Edward Burne-Jones, after whose death it was given back by Lady Burne-Jones, to the artist's mother, Mrs Beardsley. Republished in "Early Work."
IV.The Birthday of Madame Cigale, line and wash, 15 inches long by 9-1/2 inches high, influenced by Japanese models. Reproduced in "Early Work." (Property of Charles Holme, Esq.)
V.Les Revenants de Musique, line and wash. Reproduced in "Early Work." (Property of Charles Holme, Esq.)
VI.Salome with the head of St John the Baptist. Upright panel in Chinese ink on white, 10-1/8 by 5-1/8 inches, exclusive of framing lines. This was the first design suggested to the artist by Oscar Wilde's French play of "Salome." It differs from the later version of the same subject in being richer and more complex. It contains the legend, omitted in the later version,j'ai baisé ta bouche Iokanaan, j'ai baisé ta bouche. The treatment is obviously influenced by Japanese work, and also by that of the French Symboliste school,e.g.Carlos Schwabe. Republished in "Early Work." Subsequently to its appearance inTheStudio, the artist experimentally tinted it with green colour washes. In its final state it has not been published. (Formerly the property of Mrs Ernest Leverson, now of Miss K. Doulton.)
VII.Reduced reproduction of the second version of the Jeanne d'Arc procession. The same appeared, full size, as a folding plate supplement, in No. 2 ofThe Studio, May 1893.
In the first number ofThe Studio(April) also were published, by anticipation, four designs from the "Morte Darthur," due to begin its serial appearance in the following June, viz.:—
VIII.Initial letter I.
IX.Merlin taketh the child Arthur into his keeping (full page, including border).
X.Ornamental border for full page.
XI.Frieze for chapter-heading; six men fighting, on foot, three of them panoplied. Reproduced inMagazine of Art, November 1896, "Fifty Drawings,"Idler, March 1897, andSt Paul's, April 9th, 1898. The original drawing is 13-3/4 inches long by 4-1/2 inches. As may be seen, even in the reduced reproduction, one inch at either end was added by the artist at the request of his publisher, so as to increase the proportionate length of the ornament. Subsequently Mr Frederick H. Evans photographed the drawing, full size, and produced fifteen platinotype copies, of which twelve only were for sale, and the plate destroyed.
58.Design of Dandelions, for publishers' trade mark for Dent & Co.
59.Le Morte Darthur, by Sir Thomas Malory. J. M. Dent & Co. 300 copies on Dutch hand-made paper and 1500 ordinary copies. Issued in Parts, beginning June 1893.
I.Vol. I., 1893. Frontispiece—"How King Arthur saw the Questing Beast, and thereof had great marvel." Photogravure.
Full-page illustrations:—
II.Merlin taketh the child Arthur into his keeping. (Reduced reproduction inIdler, May 1898.)
III.The Lady of the Lake telleth Arthur of the sword Excalibur.
IV.Merlin and Nimue.
V.Arthur and the strange mantle.
VI.How four queens found Launcelot sleeping. (Property of A. E. Gallatin, Esq.)
VII.Sir Launcelot and the witch Hellawes. (Property of A. E. Gallatin, Esq.)
VIII.How la Beale Isoud nursed Sir Tristram.
IX.How Sir Tristram drank the love drink.
X.How la Beale Isoud wrote to Sir Tristram.
XI.How King Mark found Sir Tristram sleeping.
XII.How Morgan le Fay gave a sword to Sir Tristram.
XIII.Vol. II., 1894. Frontispiece—"The achieving of the Sangreal." Photogravure. (This was the first design executed for the work.)
Full page and double page illustrations:—
XIV.How King Mark and Sir Dinadan heard Sir Palomides making great sorrow and mourning for la Beale Isoud (double page).
XV.La Beale Isoud at Joyous Gard (double page).
XVI.How Sir Launcelot was known by Dame Elaine (full page).
XVII.How a devil in woman's likeness would have tempted Sir Bors (double page).
XVIII.How Queen Guenever rode on maying (double page).
XIX.How Sir Bedivere cast the sword Excalibur into the water (full page).
XX.How Queen Guenever made her a nun (full page).
In the two volumes there are altogether 548 ornaments, chapter-headings, borders, initials, tail-pieces, etc.; but some of them are repetitions of the same design, others reproductions of the same design in two different sizes. (Two of these are in the Victoria and Albert Museum. Eight belong to Pickford Waller, Esq. Others are the property of Hon. Gerald Ponsonby, R. C. Greenleaf, Esq., W. H. Jessop, Esq., M. H. Sands, Esq., Robert Ross, Esq., and Messrs Carfax & Co.)
XXI.Chapter-heading, a dragon, with conventional foliage spray branching into marginal ornaments; printed, but not published in the book.
XXII.Initial letter J with guardian griffins; pen-and-ink, 5-1/2 × 3-1/2 inches.
XXIII.Unfinished border design, first published in "Whistler's Art Dicta and Other Essays" by A. E. Gallatin (Boston, U.S.A., and London, 1903). (Property of A. E. Gallatin, Esq.)
XXIV.Original study, approved by the publisher, for wrappers of serial issue of the "Morte Darthur," yellowish green water-colour onwhite paper, 10-1/4 × 8-1/4 inches. This design, comprising lilies, differs from that which was finally produced by the artist and published (next item). (Property of Aymer Vallance, Esq.) 1893.
Design for wrappers of serial issue, in black on grey paper, in two states, the earlier or trial-state, having blank spaces for the lettering, only the title being given as "La Mort Darthure."
XXV.Design in gold on cream-white cloth cases of the bound volumes.
Nineteen of the above designs were republished in "A Book of Fifty Drawings," and again in "Later Work," including full-size reproductions of the following, which had suffered through excessive reduction in the published "Morte Darthur."
XXVI.Merlin (in a circle), facing list of illustrations in Vol. I. The same reproduced inThe Idler, March 1897.
XXVII.Vignette of Book I., chapter xiv. Landscape with piper in a meadow and another figure in the sky.
XXVIII.Vignette of Book III., chapter iii. Three swans swimming.
XXIX.Vignette of Book V., chapter x. Nude woman rising out of the sea, holding in one hand a sword, in the other a rose.
60.Pall Mall Magazine, June 1893.
I.Of a Neophyte, and how the Black Art was revealed unto him by the Fiend Asomuel. Full-pageillustration in pen and ink. Asomuel, meaning insomnia, was a neologism of the artist's own devising, made up of the Greekalphaprivative, the Latinsomnus, and the Hebrewel, for termination analogous to that of other spirits' names, such as Gabriel, Raphael, Azrael, etc., reproduced in "Early Work," July 1893.
II.The Kiss of Judas. Full-page illustration in pen-and-ink. Reproduced in "Early Work."
61.La Comédie aux Enfers, pen and ink, published in "Modern Illustration," by Joseph Pennell. (G. Bell & Sons, 1895.) Imp. 16mo. 1893.
62.I.Evelina, by Frances Burney. (Dent & Co., 1894.) Design in outline for title-page.
II.Evelina and her Guardian, design for illustration, pen and ink and wash, 6-7/8 × 4-7/8 (exclusive of marginal lines), not published.
III.Another illustration for the same, "Love for Love," a wash drawing, 7-1/2 × 5-1/4, unpublished. 1893.
63.Virgilius the Sorcerer. David Nutt, 1893. Frontispiece to the large paper copies only. Reproduced in "Early Work."
64.The Landslip, frontispiece to "Pastor Sang," being William Wilson's translation of Björnson's drama, "Over Ævne." Longmans & Co., 1893. A black and white design, in conscious imitation of Albert Dürer, as the peculiar form of the signature A. B. shows, the only occasion on which the artist employed this device. Reproduced in "Early Work." (Property of Messrs Shirley & Co., Paris.)
65.Bon Mots. 3 Volumes. Dent & Co., 1893.
I.Title-page reproduced in "Later Work."
II.Figure with fool's bauble, and another small ornament for the cover.
III.208 grotesques and other ornaments in the three volumes. Some of these, however, are repeated, and some printed in different sizes. Three of them reproduced in "Later Work." In an article by Max Beerbohm in theIdler, May 1898, accompanied by "some drawings that have never before been reproduced," are nine small vignettes of the "Bon Mots" type, of which number three only are explicitly ascribed to "Bon Mots" (A sheet of them belongs to W. H. Jessop, Esq. Nineteen are the property of Pickford Waller, Esq.)
66.Folly, intended for "Bon Mots," but not used in the book. The figure is walking along a branch of hawthorn, the left hand upraised, and holding the fool's baton; a flight of butterflies in lower left-hand corner; with drawing 8 × 5-1/4 inches. (Property of Littleton Hay, Esq.)
67.Pagan Papers, a volume of Essays by Kenneth Grahame. Elkin Mathews and John Lane, 1893. Title-page, design for.
68.Ada Lundberg, head and shoulders to right, coloured crayons on brown paper. Reproduced in colour in "Later Work." (Property of Julian Sampson, Esq.)
69.Keyholes Series of Novels and Short Stories.—(The publication of this series was begun by MessrsElkin Mathews and John Lane, and afterwards continued by Mr John Lane alone.)
I.Keynotes by George Egerton, 1893. Title-page design (the same employed for the cloth cover). Ornamental key, embodying the author's monogram, on back of "Contents" page (the same device on the back of the book). This plan was adopted for each volume of the series.
II.The Dancing Faun, by Florence Farr (the Faun in the design has the eyeglass and features of J. McNeill Whistler).
III.Poor Folk. Translated from the Russian of F. Dostoievsky, by Lena Milman.
IV.A Child of the Age, by Francis Adams.
V.The Great God Pan and the Inmost Light, by Arthur Machen, also unfinished sketch in pencil upon the back of the finished design.
VI.Discords, by George Egerton.
VII.Prince Zaleski, by M. P. Shiel.