If László Boris had not died of tuberculosis in a French sanatorium at the age of just 27, there is little doubt that he would have become a key artist of the interwar Munich School. As it is, he left us with a few tantalising clues as to his talents, including one of the best portfolios of erotic wit of the period.

Wladislaus Boris (he preferred the diminutive László) grew up in Budapest, where he studied art before spending time in Paris. In 1920 he moved to Munich, where he created illustrations for the satirical weekly magazine Simplicissimus, and made etchings for the Theatre volume, written by critic Peter Panter, in the Leipzig-published Schatten (Shadows) series.

The following year an exhibition of his drawings and etchings was held at the Ernst Museum, and in 1922 he produced etchings and a colour cover image for the first Hungarian edition of Gogol’s iconic short story, Egy örült emlékiratai (Diary of a Madman). Less than a year later, however, he was diagnosed with tuberculosis, a major killer in the post-war years, and spent his final months in hospital in the French Mediterranean resort of Menton.

Similar artists

Franz von Bayros – Austrian fin-de-siècle illustrator of refined erotic subjects.
Marcus Behmer – German illustrator of refined fin-de-siècle erotic and literary subjects.
Marcel Janco – Romanian-Israeli Dada artist of figurative and erotic graphic work.
Hanns Pellar – Austrian illustrator of fin-de-siècle erotic and decorative subjects.
István Prihoda – Hungarian engraver of refined erotic miniatures and bookplates.
Mihály Zichy – Hungarian painter of aristocratic erotic and literary subjects.