The Art of Decadence: European Fantasy Art of the Fin-de-Siècle (PIE × Hiroshi Unno Art Series) Tankobon Hardcover – December 1, 2017

If I could give this 10 stars I would. Honestly if it wasn't for that video review posted on here I would not have bought this, those 6 "preview pages" don't do this book justice at all. The work and detail overall is so gorgeous but the minute I saw that printed fore-edge in the video it was an instant buy for me. I had to have it. Decadent definitely describes this book. It's so gorgeous I wanna cry. It's pretty hefty in covering all European art eras from Art Deco, Art Nouveau to Classical to Surrealism, etc. The theme is decadence so Hiroshi Unno did a great job in encapsulating that by curating artworks that carry that theme. That's what I really love about his books, he's not stingy with the page space, he's very thorough in the visuals. And for Graphic Design nerds I definitely think this one is a treat because the attention to detail in design choices alone is amazing. It's full of surprises. From the delicious dust jacket printed in red foil, the intro pages printed in tissue paper, to the fore-edge that is double printed with 2 different pictures (seriously see the video review). Soooooo good! I also got the one on Alphonse Mucha and that one also is a stunner. Wish all these books came with videos so you can really see what's inside. And just to note, my book arrived with a little damage to the book jacket and Amazon replaced it right away. So that was nice.

This one's a stunner! An INCREDIBLE collection of decadent/Symbolist art in foil embossed French wraps. I have a number of books on both subjects, and this book has loads of paintings that I've never seen. Reproductions are balanced and bright.It also sports DOUBLE FORE EDGE art work! This is the first "mass market" fore edge that I'm aware of...I can't recommend enough, sure to become a collectors item (once the word gets out!)

The Art of Decadence: European Fantasy Art of the Fin-de-Siècle is one of the most beautiful book in my collection. It's filled with different painters and illustrators of the late XIX century and the first decades of the XX.The book is divided into several categories that encompass works by the Pre-Raphaelite, Simbolist and academic painters, some art nouveau designers, golden age illustrators and surreal artists. All the paintings are printed in (a glorious) full color. The selection of the works and the design choices of the book are SPLENDID, being the double fore-edge painting the most creative and faithfull tribute to some XIX century books. Believe me when I tell you that the book is a work of art by itself.Recommend for artists, designers, illustrators and art lovers in general. ¡It's worth every penny!

The art of the Symbolist movement, and related movements such as Preraphaelite art and Art Nouveau, flourished in Europe in the late 19th century. It was often associated with the idea of “decadence,” a rebellion against the moral strictures of the Victorian period and a belief that only pleasure and beauty mattered. Critics, then and later, rejected this art as mere decoration at best and pornography at worst. It nonetheless has fascinated many who love fantasy art, and it is a forerunner of such later types of art as Surrealism, the band posters of the 1960s, and modern “Goth” or “dark” fantasy art. This collection provides an excellent sample of art of this type.The collection will also be of interest to those who study attitudes toward and images of women, because if there was one thing that obsessed artists in this group, it was the female form—often at its most sexual. Faced with the first stirrings of demand for women’s rights, many of the male artists in this group apparently found the combination of women and sexuality to be terrifying. They either portrayed it as such, in figures such as Salome and Medusa, or attempted to tame it by turning their painted women into pure and unobtainable angels, mere decorative forms, or passive figures such as Andromeda, chained to her rock and helplessly waiting for a man to rescue her.I had mixed feelings about Unno’s text, at least the portions of it that were in English (most of it is in Japanese). Some of his art-history generalizations struck me as dubious at best, and he seemed willing to claim that words such as symbol meant whatever he wanted them to. Nonetheless, some of his ideas—such as the notion that “decadence” could mean simply a breaking down of boundaries, which could have positive as well as negative effects, and his classification of art works into four categories depending on their view of women—made interesting food for thought.I also had mixed feelings about the book design. The color is lush, and there are clever things such as the right-hand edges of the book collectively forming an image of roses if looked at from one angle and a skeleton if looked at from another. Some ideas, however, such as having text printed on pages that are both colored and infused with a background design, seemed unwise; they made reading the material difficult almost to the point of pain.In spite of these fairly minor flaws, I would recommend this book highly to lovers of fantasy art and to those interested in portrayals of women. I have seen some of these pictures in other anthologies, but others were much rarer. Overall, as with Unno’s other books, this is a treat for the eye.

Love the book, but unfortunately the shipping/handling was not good and the bottom cover are folded when it came....

I’m going mad because there’s no protection on my books during delivery! They sent me a box with two books. And there’s no other package at all! The book covers are made of paper so I can see that they are fold. You should know they’re art books and most of people buy them for collection. Because we love books and art. These two books are damn good but the delivery is truly awful. I expect them for so long and now they ruined my good mood.