Obscene pictures of great amateurism

6th April 2021

‘Obscene pictures of great amateurism’ is the official verdict on today’s new artist, the obscure 1920s Herr Bénis. But his etchings do have a naive charm, and can still inspire and encourage today’s amateur artists! See them here, and imagine his life and times.

Spanking new illustrations by, err, who ... ?

4th April 2021

A real treat for all you lovers of illustrated 1920s flagellation classics – no fewer than five spanking new portfolios from the hand of the pseudonymous artist Gaston Smit (or is it Topfer, or Barclay?). Whatever, they are on the website now, see them here. Enjoy!

Dangerous women

3rd April 2021

An important new portfolio today from one of your favourite artists, Alméry Lobel-Riche – all the illustrations from the powerful 1910 edition of Les Diaboliques (The She-Devils), Barbey d’Aurevilly’s stories of female revenge. They’re on the website now; see them here.

Male magnificence!

2nd April 2021

It isn’t often that a woman chooses to concentrate on drawing naked men, even rarer for her to emphasise the bits that appear to interest her the most, their wondrous cocks and balls. So here are Patricia Boulay’s brightly-coloured works. Enjoy!

Rewriting history

31st March 2021

So it was Eve that had all the fun! Poor Adam. Today’s new artist, Leo Impekoven, was a brilliant designer and had a fertile imagination – see his version of the creation story here, and understand why patriarchy is doomed!

All About Love?

30th March 2021

We’ve just added all the missing images to the 1925 ‘Eugène Reunier’ (Carl Breuer-Courth) portfolio, Autour de l’amour (All About Love), so it’s now complete – see them all here. Have fun!

The arbitrariness of pornography laws

29th March 2021

The maverick Austrian artist and sculptor Alfred Hrdlicka was preoccupied with history, politics and personal freedom, and his 1973 Wiener Blut portfolio makes it clear what he thought of the Austrian pornography laws! See it here now.

The battle between lust and ‘polite society’

27th March 2021

Today’s new artist is the Austrian Alwine Hotter, who during her long life produced many sensitive portraits and a telling cycle of linocuts depicting the sordid underside of polite Austrian society. See her bold work here.

Poverty and necessity in 1920s Berlin

23rd March 2021

Heinrich Zille’s 1921 Hurengespräche (Whore Talk) is a classic of working-class urban poverty, complete with his trademark sketches of working women and their clients. Sadly unavailable in English, you can still see his telling images here.

An imaginative 1920s German phallic homage

22nd March 2021

Friedrich Wilhelm Kleukens was one of the leading lights of the German secession style between 1900 and 1918, mirroring in Germany the aims and aspirations of the British Arts and Crafts Movement. He only made one erotic portfolio, which you can see here.