Het kunstbordeel #2

Gradimir Smudja's lushly painted cover for this second volume of Het Kunstbordeel — subtitled Mimi & Henri — draws the eye immediately to a beautifully dressed young woman whose elaborate fur-trimmed hood is crowned by an enormous owl, its wings spread protectively around her face. Below her, a diminutive, bowler-hatted figure with an exaggerated grin gestures cheerfully against a glittering Montmartre backdrop complete with a windmill aglow in red. Smudja's rich, jewel-toned palette and Belle Époque sensibility make this 2006 album a genuinely gorgeous object, promising a story steeped in Parisian nightlife and artistic bohemia.