''Earth Inferno'' is the first book by the English artist and
magician Austin Osman Spare
Austin Osman Spare (30 December 1886 – 15 May 1956) was an English artist and occultism, occultist who worked as both a draughtsman and a painter. Influenced by Symbolism (arts), symbolism and Art Nouveau, his art was known for its clear use o ...
, written when he was 18.
Artist's book
Conceived as an
anti-establishment
An anti-establishment view or belief is one which stands in opposition to the conventional social, political, and economic principles of a society. The term was first used in the modern sense in 1958 by the British magazine ''New Statesman'' ...
reaction to the publicity surrounding his inclusion in the Royal Academy summer show in 1904, the book was developed over the remainder of that year and was eventually published in 1905. Printed by the Co-Operative Printing Society, the book was designed by the artist and self-published in an edition of 265 numbered and signed copies.
''Revised Notes Towards A Bibliography of Austin Osman Spare''
Clive Harper and Mandrake Press, 2007
Influences and design
Influenced heavily by Dante
Dante Alighieri (; most likely baptized Durante di Alighiero degli Alighieri; – September 14, 1321), widely known mononymously as Dante, was an Italian Italian poetry, poet, writer, and philosopher. His ''Divine Comedy'', originally called ...
's '' Inferno'', the book is decorated with poems and aphorisms in an aesthetic style. It clearly shows the design influence of Spare's early supporter Charles Ricketts
Charles de Sousy Ricketts (2 October 1866 – 7 October 1931) was a British artist, illustrator, author and printer, known for his work as a book designer and typographer and for his costume and scenery designs for plays and operas.
Ricketts ...
. Each pair of pages contains a painting and a commentary toward that painting. In addition to excerpts from Dante, the book also contains excerpts from Edward FitzGerald's translation of ''Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam
''Rubáiyát of Omar Khayyám'' is the title that Edward FitzGerald (poet), Edward FitzGerald gave to his 1859 translation from Persian language, Persian to English of a selection of quatrains (') attributed to Omar Khayyam (1048–1131), dub ...
''.
Concepts
Published when the artist was 18 years of age, the book introduces the reader for the first time to Spare's fundamental concepts such as Kia, Ikkah and Sikah and Zos.
On page 10, Spare alludes to "The Book of KIĀ".
Notes
External links
Facsimile of the original book
{{chaos magic series
1905 books
Books about magic
Self-published books
Works based on Inferno (Dante)