His most famous illustration (The Peacock Skirt) – Aubrey Beardsley
English illustrator, cartoonist and author Aubrey Vincent Beardsley (1872-1898) was born in Brighton, Menton, France on August 21, 1872. The pioneer of “aesthetics” and “Art Nouveau”, Aubrey’s accent on components Erotic is shown in many of his drawings. The most daring and audacious representation could be seen in his famous illustrations Lysistrata and Salomé, especially “The Peacock Skirt”.
Beardsley’s artistic styles were staggered, differentiated by their unique signatures, dedicated to each phase. For example, beginning by leaving unsigned works of art, the next six years carried their peculiar signatures, while in the years 1891 and 1892 he used his work with his initials AVB Aubrey Beardsley belonged to the group of artists called ‘Art Nouveau’. The ‘Art Nouveau’ was a form of art and architecture that reached its popularity in the 20th century. The word ‘Art Nouveau’ is a French word that means ‘New Art’. The ‘Art Nouveau’ used to showcase dark and villainous images. However, the main theme of Aubrey Beardsley’s later works were erotic illustrations inspired by Japanese ‘shunga’ (heterosexual or homosexual lovemaking techniques, positions, behavior and possibilities), history and mythology. Aubrey Beardsley did numerous illustrations for magazines and books as well. His most famous illustration was “The Peacock Skirt” for Oscar Wilde’s play “Salomé.”
Oscar Wilde was a close and dear friend of Beardsley. Aubrey procreated “The Peacock Skirt” in 1894. The play Salomé was published for the first time in 1893 in French and the following year in English, to be finally performed in Paris in 1896. In this illustration, the beautiful Salomé, the daughter of Herod and Herodias, try to lure the Syrian captain of the guard. She uses her beauty for this act, so that the Captain can free the prisoner John the Baptist. At the end of the play, Salome kisses John’s head. According to the famous myth, John the Baptist does not accept Salome’s love. Therefore, Salome uses her beauty and power to execute John the Baptist.
“The Peacock Skirt” was a black and white illustration, created in pen and ink. This illustration was inspired by one of James McNeil Whistler’s works ‘The Princess of the Land of Porcelain’. The black and white lines resembled the style commonly used by Japanese artists. In this illustration, Salome and the Syrian captain of the guard are displayed opposite each other. The image on the right side is wearing a long, wide-sleeved robe. The image on the left side of the illustration has her hair adorned with legions of peacock feathers. He wears heavily embroidered clothing on the back. The embroidery is literally limited to the lowest section of the garment. On the far left, the pattern of a peacock is also manifested.