Aubrey Bearsley

Self initiated portrait

A portrait of one of my favourite illustrators, Aubrey Beardsley. Aubrey was born in my hometown of Brighton and his work brought a great elegance and uneasy eroticism to the early 20th century illustration world. I've used yellow as a background colour to reference The Yellow Book, Oscar Wilde's literary project which Beardsley often contributed illustrations to. Wilde said he 'had a face like a silver hatchet, and grass green hair'. His work is graceful, timeless yet very Modern; influenced by Japanese woodcuts and the sinewy forms of Art Nouveau. Beardsley was a dilettante, an aesthete and took great care over his clothes and hair. He died at the unthinkably young age of 25, having suffered all his life from tuberculosis. We are so lucky that he left us with so much beautiful work. I love him!