"The Book of Beauty" 1930 Beaton, Cecil

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BEATON, Cecil

[67] pp.

Duckworth Press

1930

11 1/4" x 9"

Amazing/ unique copy hand-painted by Cecil Beaton himself w/ … Read more BEATON, Cecil

[67] pp.

Duckworth Press

1930

11 1/4" x 9"

Amazing/ unique copy hand-painted by Cecil Beaton himself w/ his signature 'rosebuds' over the polka dot boards

'I have tried...to make my book an analysis of modern beauty, a collection of the loveliest ladies I have ever seen, and, in time, it may become a sentimental document for our grandchildren, to marvel at all the types of beauty to-day; the latest varieties of Venus as well as the counterparts of former belles.' (Beaton in his Introduction)

Cecil Beaton's scarce first book. The Book of Beauty is Beaton's unashamed paean to the beauty of the women who inhabit his world. The book is inspired by books of beauty published in the Victorian period and by his childhood fascination with the theatricality and glamour of the opposite sex. Photographs of women are accompanied by flowery descriptions. Sitters include Baba and Nancy Beaton, Edith Sitwell, Tallulah Bankhead, Tilly Losch, Nancy Cunard and Lady Diana Cooper. The whole captures the wit, intelligence and spirit of the modern women. See less