The Satyrical Drawings of Martin Van Maele

Martin Van Maele made his reputation almost exclusively as an illustrator of satyrical themes. Working in shops in Paris and Brussels around the turn of the century, his talents were discovered by the noted publisher Charles Carrington. For Carrington, Maele illustrated at least eight famous flagellation novels that were to become the staple of the French erotic book trade.The rare works in La Grande Danse macabre des vifs in this volume contain some of the most poignant yet bizarre erotic illustrations to come out of the turn of the century. The references to the industrial revolution, to the Victorian ethic, to the problem of youth's forbidden sexual fantasy, and aged men gasping for their last leap at sexual pleasure, indicate a sensitivity.Van Maele is ranked with Rops, Rowlandson, Von Bayros, Beardsley, Borel Chauvet, Eisen, Deveria, and vertes.