An Inventory of His Art Collection at the Harry Ransom Center
Creator:
Beardsley, Aubrey,
1872-1898
Title:
Aubrey Beardsley Art
Collection
Dates:
1890-1960 (bulk 1890-1898).
Extent:
124 items
Abstract:
The Beardsley Collection consists of
drawings, illustrations, lithographs, and reproductions of Beardsley’s work.
Beardsley’s illustrations are found in Salome by
Oscar Wilde, Lucian’s True History and Tales of Edgar Allan Poe. Many of the drawings are
scenes of women and many of the works are initialed and inscribed.
Call Number:
Art Collection AR-00018
Language:
English and
French
Access:
Open for research. Please note that a minimum of 24 hours notice is required to pull
art materials to the Ransom Center's Reading and Viewing Room. Some materials
may be
restricted from viewing. To make an appointment or to reserve art materials, please
contact the Center's staff at art@hrc.utexas.edu.
Aubrey Vincent Beardsley was born in Brighton, England, on 21 August 1872 and showed
early artistic ability, acting and playing in concerts with his sister Mabel and
producing drawings of recognized merit. The Beardsley family's means were modest,
and by 1888 Aubrey had quit school to work as a clerk. At the age of nineteen
Beardsley embarked on a career as an illustrator, and with the encouragement of
Pierre Puvis de Chavannes in France and Joseph Pennell in England he quickly made
a
name for himself. His fame was ensured with the publication of the Dent edition
of
Malory's Le Morte D'Arthur in 1892, and by the
following year the "Beardsley boom" was in full
flower.
In 1894 Beardsley became the art editor of The Yellow
Book under the general editorship of Oscar Wilde, but his advancing
tuberculosis and Wilde's arrest put an end to that satirical periodical before
1895
was out. Beardsley's increasingly poor health forced his move across several health
resorts, but under the patronage of André Raffalovich he continued, despite severe
difficulties, to produce his drawings. In 1896 alone he created numerous
illustrations for The Savoy, The Rape of the Lock, and Lysistrata
During 1897 Aubrey Beardsley's health continued to decline as serious work became
increasingly difficult and his creative output dwindled. He died at Menton, France,
on 16 March 1898.
Scope and Contents
The Beardsley Collection consists of drawings, illustrations, lithographs, and
reproductions of Beardsley’s work. Beardsley’s illustrations are found in Salome by Oscar Wilde, Lucian’s
True History, and Tales of Edgar Allan
Poe. A handful of items are either copies, or of questionable
attribution (65.190; 65.275.1-7). The collection was formed by Dr. Severn and
purchased by the University in the 1960s from Bertram Rota.
Related Material
There is a collection of letters in the Aubrey Beardsley Collection (MS-00287), two
proof photolithographs by Beardsley for Lucian's True
History, one sketch, and one print in the James F. Drake, Inc. Art
Collection. The materials located in the Drake collection are described in this
finding aid (65.520.1587; 65.520.1588.1-16; 65.520.1589).
Separated Material
There are three items--a pocket knife, a paper cutter, and an agate seal--present
in
the Personal Effects collection.
