Flavio Febbraro
How to Read Erotic Art
Ludion, 2011
I’ve read this book, over many months, by dint of dipping into it from time to time at bedtime. I found it interesting and absorbing although I didn’t really get any “wow factor”. I did find it hard to put down, but also hard to pick up again – if only because it is chunky and not a comfortable bedtime read.
Although the major emphasis is on western art, the book covers painting and sculpture from China and Japan through India and Europe to Meso-America. It also covers the complete timespan from pre-history to the present day. This wide-ranging subject matter demonstrates that neither the ancients, nor other cultures, had any less interest in the erotic than we do – they just had different artistic styles and way of presenting it within their culture and ability.
The erotic is not just mainstream heterosexual; the vast majority of (non-fetish) erotica is included: male, female, heterosexual, homosexual, mythical, fantasy, even some BDSM.
But the book is more than this. As it is organised chronologically it provides a timeline for the development of art from pre-history to the present day – especially useful as it gives the art historically ignorant like me a much better grasp of who was working when, and who were contemporaries.
Most entries in the 380 pages are double page spreads (a few run over 4 pages) depicting a particular painting/sculpture with a short general explanation and one or two even shorter detailed explanations of what one is looking at. Many entries also contain a couple of paragraphs of historical context; these are often highly interesting.
The book is well produced with excellent colour reproduction on heavy art paper; it is between A5 and A4 in size and 3 cm thick; which makes it quite heavy. The cover is soft; somewhere between hardback and paperback with some nastily sharp corners. That plus the weight make it uncomfortable to read in bed.
Finally a word for the unwary. This is a book about erotic art. Do not go to it looking for titillation, because you won’t find it. It is about art, not pornography. It is worth a look if you are interested in art or the development of artistic erotica.
Overall Rating: ★★★☆☆