Creative Alien dives deep into the world of unconventional artists offering an unfiltered glimpse into their raw and sometimes tragic lives. Discover the intriguing biographies of self-taught, neurodivergent, and outsider artists, as well as those living on society’s fringes.
AOS’s life is nothing short of complex and interesting. We see him rub elbows with occult royalty, marry, self-publish some more grotesque works, and take part in WWI.
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Source:
1. Austin Osman Spare: The Life and Legend of London’s Lost Artist by Phil Baker
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Description
In the previous episode, we talked about the beginning of Austin Osman Spare’s life as an artist prodigy. At 17, he was one of the youngest people to ever exhibit at the Royal Academy of Arts.
His sudden thrust into the spotlight unfortunately polluted his desire for a a conventional art career. Spare was accepted into the Royal College of Arts, but ended up dropping out before graduating. Soon after, he self-published two short books, Earth: Inferno and The Book of Satyrs, both containing numerous highly detailed drawings in Spare’s signature style.
In 1907, Spare had a successful one man show where he was approached by Aleister Crowley. Crowley recruited Spare into his order Argentum Astrum, but the relationship fell apart ending with Spare making poo cakes disguised as exotic deserts for Crowley to eat.
Photos
Automatic drawing by Austin Osman Spare, 1916 
Work first published in The Focus of Life (1921) by Austin Osman Spare, reprinted in Austin Osman Spare: The Life and Legend of Londons Lost Artist by Phil Baker, 2023 edition, pg. 134. 
Drawing in The Book of Ugly Ecstasy (1924) by Austin Osman Spare, reprinted in Austin Osman Spare: The Life and Legend of Londons Lost Artist by Phil Baker, 2023 edition, pg. 145.
Sources
- Austin Osman Spare: The Life and Legend of London’s Lost Artist by Phil Baker, 2023