Restrospect respect

November 16, 2008 9:10 AM

Georges Barbier(nsfw)(1882-1932) Fashion Illustrator extraordinaire whose prints are easily found on the web now has the first posthumous exhibition of his work on show in Venice. Titled: The Birth of Art Deco Despite his prodigious output there is little biographical detail of his life. Some of his designs were exquisite. ( related ).
posted by adamvasco (10 comments total)

His stuff reminds me of Aubrey Beardsley's work, but with more color. Neat stuff. Not a huge art deco fan, but like some of his figures.
posted by cjorgensen at 9:59 AM on November 16, 2008

This is lovely, thank you.
posted by jokeefe at 11:26 AM on November 16, 2008

Oh wow, this is wonderful. Thanks!
posted by grapefruitmoon at 3:53 PM on November 16, 2008

Hmm, Chez la marchande des pavots (alas, minus boobies) must certainly have inspired the opium den scene in the Blue Lotus.
posted by Skeptic at 4:24 PM on November 16, 2008

huh, coming back to your post late in the day totally surprised there haven't been many more comments. This is an extraordinary find and wonderfully put together post, adamvasco.

Georges Barbier's art is breathtakingly lovely. Adding another album of images of his work. So much of it is iconic Art Deco style. Extraordinary use of color. Sumptuous use of textures.

It's so sensual, alluring, really erotic.

There is a sort of zen spaciousness in many of his images, which reminds me of the color blocking in Indian miniature painting.

You can see the transition in Barbier's paintings from his Art Nouveau style to his airy, elegant, Art Deco style.

This harlequin of Barbier's makes me think of Picasso's harlequins, about the visual camaraderie of all the artists in Paris at that artistically cataclysmic time. Here's a Barbier, Les Dames Seules, that reminds me of a Toulouse Lautrec's Divan Japonais.

It's been a wonderful hour exploring his work, adamvasco. Thanks so much.
posted by nickyskye at 5:08 PM on November 16, 2008 [1 favorite has favorites]

Oh wow, thanks for this! You have both introduced me to a new illustrator I previously didn't know I had to know about, and also identified the artist of a few illustrations I already admired.

(Great post btw)
posted by Megami at 9:23 PM on November 16, 2008

Thanks adamvasco -- you, too, nickyskye.

There are some great hi-res images there, too -- if you go into a gallery page like this, then right-click to view the image alone, like this, you can delete the word ".sized" from the link to get this.
posted by robcorr at 11:22 PM on November 16, 2008 [1 favorite has favorites]

Oooh, can't wait to get home to look at these. I adore Art Deco, but have no idea if they will trigger the Net Nanny or not.

You know, I was just discussing this with Mr. Arkham...at what point did artistic Art Deco b00bies become NSFW?
posted by JoanArkham at 7:03 AM on November 17, 2008

robcorr, cool tip about seeing the images, thanks. wow. Am so enjoying seeing them in more detail. Sweet.
posted by nickyskye at 8:20 AM on November 17, 2008

Can't just favorite this and move on; have to comment. Love it, thanks so much.
posted by paisley henosis at 5:40 PM on November 17, 2008