# Art of Darkness: A Treasury of the Morbid, Melancholic and Macabre - Hardcover

by **S. Elizabeth** (Author)

**_The Art of Darkness_ is a visually rich sourcebook featuring eclectic artworks that have been inspired and informed by the morbid, melancholic, and macabre.**

Throughout history, artists have been **obsessed with darkness** - creating works that **haunt** and **horrify**, **mesmerise** and **delight,** and play on our **innermost fears**. **Gentileschi** took revenge with paint in _Judith Slaying Holofernes_ while **Bosch** depicted fearful visions of Hell that still beguile. Victorian Britain became strangely obsessed with **the dead** and in Norway **Munch** explored anxiety and fear in one of the most famous paintings in the world (_The Scream_, 1893). Today, the Chapman Brothers, Damien Hirst and Louise Bourgeois, as well as many lesser known artists working in the margins, are still drawn to **all that is macabre**.

From **Dreams & Nightmares** to **Matters of Mortality**, **Depravity & Destruction** to **Gods & Monsters** \- this book introduces sometimes **disturbing** and often **beautiful** artworks that **indulge our greatest fears**, uniting us as humans from century to century.

But, while these themes might scare us - can't they also be heartening and beautiful? Exploring and examining the artworks with thoughtful and evocative text, S. Elizabeth offers insight into each artist's influences and inspirations, asking **what comfort can be found in facing our demons****?** **Why are we tempted by fear and the grotesque? And what does this tell us about the human mind?**

Of course, sometimes there is no good that can come from the sensibilities of darkness and the sickly shivers and sensations they evoke. These are uncomfortable feelings, and we must sit for a while with these shadows - from the safety of our armchairs.

Artists covered include **Pablo Picasso**, **Georgia O'Keeffe**, **Francisco de Goya**, **Leonora Carrington**, **John Everett Millais**, **Tracey Emin**, **Vincent van Gogh**, **Barbara Hepworth**, **Paul Cezanne,** and **Salvador Dalí**, as well as scores more. With over **200** **c****arefully curated artworks** from across the centuries, _The Art of Darkness_ examines all that is dark in a bid to haunt and hearten.

This book is part of the **Art in the Margins** series, following up on _The Art of the Occult,_ which investigates representations of the mystical, esoteric and occult in art from across different times and cultures.

### Author Biography

**S. Elizabeth** (aka Mlle Ghoul) is a Florida-based writer specialising in art, the macabre and the supernatural. She is a staff writer at Haute Macabre and has written for _Coilhouse_, _Dirge_ and the blog _Death & the Maiden_. S. Elizabeth was also the co-creator of _The Occult Activity Book_ (vol 1 and 2) and runs two successful blogs: Ghoul Next Door (ghoulnextdoor.tumblr.com) and These Unquiet Things (unquietthings.com).

**Number of Pages:** 240

**Dimensions:** 1.08 x 9.11 x 7.06 IN

**Publication Date:** September 20, 2022

## Details

- **Price:** 30.0 USD
- **Vendor:** Books by splitShops
- **Type:** Books
- **Tags:** Books by splitShops, Shopify Collective

## Variants

| Variant | Price | Available |
|---------|-------|-----------|
| Default Title | 30.00 USD | In stock |

## Images

- Art of Darkness: A Treasury of the Morbid, Melancholic and Macabre - Hardcover

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