LITMIR.BIZ

Like his contemporary, the English poet laureate Alfred, Lord Tennyson, Gustave Doré (1832–83) was highly regarded for his mastery of technique. One of the most prolific and successful book illustrators of the late nineteenth century, he provided a wealth of hauntingly beautiful illustrations for the first four parts of Idylls of the King, Tennyson's classic poetic treatment of the Arthurian legends. This volume contains meticulous reproductions of all 36 plates from rare English editions published in 1867–69.Like many of his other works, Doré's illustrations for the Idylls possess great drama, detail, and power, overlaid with a melancholy, otherworldly mood. His masterly technique is abundantly evident in splendid, idealized scenes illustrating the romantic involvements of four lovely ladies: «the fair Elaine,» much enamored of Lancelot; Guinevere, Arthur's perfidious queen; Enid, the wife of Geraint, one of Arthur's knights; and the «wily Vivien,» a scheming beauty who attempts to seduce the wizard Merlin.Accompanied by synopses and appropriate quotations from Tennyson's poem, Doré's illustrations bring these marvelous legends to vivid life.

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At the age of 16, Gustave Doré was the highest-paid illustrator in France. Twenty years later, in 1868, at the peak of his artistic genius, he produced magnificent illustrations for Jean de La Fontaine's witty and high polished Fables ― poems and timeless tales with charming images of country folk and animal life, as well as heroes from Greek mythology and creatures from fables by Aesop. This collection includes all 84 full-page plates plus 39 vignettes from a rare, early edition and includes, among others, scenes from «The Wolf and the Lamb,» «The Lion and the Gnat,» «The Hare and the Tortoise,» and «Ulysses' Companions.»

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Gustave Doré (1832–83) was perhaps the most successful illustrator of the nineteenth century. His Doré Bible was a treasured possession in countless homes, and his best-received works continued to appear through the years in edition after edition. His illustrations for Dante's Divine Comedy constitute one of his most highly regarded efforts and were Doré's personal favorites.The present volume reproduces with excellent clarity all 135 plates that Doré produced for The Inferno, Purgatory, and Paradise. From the depths of hell onto the mountain of purgatory and up to the empyrean realms of paradise, Doré's illustrations depict the passion and grandeur of Dante's masterpiece in such famous scenes as the embarkation of the souls for hell, Paolo and Francesca (four plates), the forest of suicides, Thaïs the harlot, Bertram de Born holding his severed head aloft, Ugolino (four plates), the emergence of Dante and Virgil from hell, the ascent up the mountain, the flight of the eagle, Arachne, the lustful sinners being purged in the seventh circle, the appearance of Beatrice, the planet Mercury, and the first splendors of paradise, Christ on the cross, the stairway of Saturn, the final vision of the Queen of Heaven, and many more.Each plate is accompanied by appropriate lines from the Henry Wadsworth Longfellow translation of Dante's work.

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Here are the original eight stories from the 1697 volume Contes de temps passé by the great Charles Perrault (1628–1703) in a translation that retains the charming and unsentimental simplicity that has won Perrault a permanent position in French literature. These were among the earliest versions of some of our most familiar fairy tales («Cinderella,» «Sleeping Beauty,» «Little Red Riding Hood,» «Puss in Boots,» and «Tom Thumb») and are still among the few classic re-tellings of these perennial stories.In addition to the five well-known tales listed above, Perrault tells three others that are sure to delight any child or adult: «The Fairies,» a short and very simple tale of two sisters, one sweet and one spiteful; «Ricky of the Tuft,» a very unusual story of a brilliant but ugly prince and a beautiful but stupid princess; and «Blue Beard,» a suspense story perhaps more famous as a classic thriller than as a fairy tale. The witty verse morals that Perrault included in the original edition (often omitted in later reprintings) are retained here in verse translations.This edition also includes 34 extraordinary full-page engravings by Gustave Doré that show clearly why this artist became the foremost illustrator of his time. These illustrations have long been considered the ideal accompaniment to Perrault's fairy tales. In many cases they created the pictorial image that we associate with the stories.Along with the collections of Andersen, Lang, and the Brothers Grimm, this volume is among the great books of European fairy tales. These stories have been enjoyed by generation after generation of children in many countries, and are here, with magnificent Doré illustrations, waiting to be enjoyed again.

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This superb compilation showcases the art of Gustave Doré, one of the nineteenth century's most prolific and successful book illustrators. Brimming with stunning images created to accompany the world's greatest literature, this volume compiles the very finest and most famous plates from Doré's work.Scores of magnificent, finely wrought engravings feature such dramatic and powerful scenes as Don Quixote tilting at windmills, Christ driving the money-changers from the temple, Moses destroying the tablets inscribed with the Ten Commandments, and Charon rowing his ferry to the gates of Hell. Sources include immortal stories ranging from Milton's Paradise Lost and Dante's Divine Comedy to Coleridge's Rime of the Ancient Mariner, Poe's «The Raven,» and more than a dozen other books.For graphic artists and designers, this collection will provide an outstanding assortment of royalty-free images. For lovers of art and literature, these inspired plates will provide the definitive imagery of a host of literary classics.

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