Aubrey Beardsley (1872 1898) was only twenty-five when he died fromtuberculosis, but in his short life he established a reputation as one of the mostaccomplished and controversial illustrators of his day. Astonishingly, all hiswork was created in the course of only six years, yet his contribution to thevisual language of Art Nouveau was profound; today, his work is instantlyrecognizable for its use of black ink and flowing lines on white paper, alongwith its erotically charged subject matter. Not all his work was sexuallyprovocative much was satirical, attacking the decadent mores of the time but some was and remains shocking, taking its stylistic inspiration fromJapanese shunga and Greek vase painting and its thematic inspiration frommythology, history, poetry and drama.T his book offers a wealth of illustrations by Beardsley, and introduces hisexquisitely crafted drawings and prints to a new audience. Including a textby Jan Marsh, Aubrey Beardsley brings together a carefully curated selectionof works from Beardsley's tragically short but highly productive life.