Gamiani, ou une nuit d’excès (Gamiani, or A Night of Excess), widely assumed to have been written by Alfred de Musset, is one of the best-known and most-illustrated of French erotic novels. Based on de Musset’s experiences with George Sand and her lesbian lover, Gamiani opens with Alcide watching Countess Gamiani and her young lover Fanny enjoying one another’s bodies. Very much aroused, Alcide reveals himself and joins them, and they spend the rest of their time together sharing their intimate stories and re-enacting scenes from them.

Gamiani has inspired many artists, and Celedonio Perellón produced this portfolio of twelve etchings with a view of persuading a publisher to produce a Spanish translation. This never happened, so he produced the portfolio himself, with a printing of just 125 copies. Perellón’s Gamiani images are the most daring, explicit and experimental works of this master of erotic art.