Alberto Martini's Surreal Illustrations at Laocoon Gallery London

Laocoon Gallery in London presents 'Alberto Martini. Masks and Shadows', a solo exhibition exploring the surreal and unsettling illustrations of Italian artist Alberto Martini (1876-1954). The show features pen and pencil drawings, watercolors, engravings, and lithographs that position Martini as a decadent and symbolist artist who anticipated surrealism. Martini illustrated works by Edgar Allan Poe, William Shakespeare, and Stéphane Mallarmé, contributed to Marinetti's magazine 'Poesia', and collaborated with 'La Lettura', the literary supplement of Corriere della Sera. He was a favorite artist of the Marchesa Casati, serving as her director, costume designer, and portraitist for her masquerade parties in Venice. The exhibition also highlights his three-decade collaboration with Vittorio Pica, a major promoter of modern European graphic art in Italy. On view until February 28.