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| We had this 1897 poster in our dining room when first married many years ago. |
Poster art is sometimes seen as something inferior - wrongly, in my
view. Mucha created a huge number of advertising posters in a similar style to
this one, which are instantly recognisable as his work. Art Nouveau, which is
one of my favourite art movements, embodied the perfect meeting of art and
design. In the late 1800’s art was everywhere and everywhere you looked it was
Nouveau. The English Arts & Crafts movement was a major
influence on the style as were the contemporary Japanese artists.
Mucha's Jewish roots and Slav nationalism made him a target of the
Gestapo after the invasion of Czechoslovakia in 1939 and he died of a chest
infection in Prague that year.
I am listening to John Williams playing Vals
Criollo by Antonio Lauro Click HERE to listen to this beautiful piece of
music
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14 comments:
Hello Bazza, I was lucky enough to catch an entire large show devoted to Mucha at the Taipei History Museum a few years ago. The History Museum (while it does possess a fine collection) is not the famous Palace Museum, but has facilities for hosting large shows.
--Jim
I love Mucha's work. It was perfectly suited to his Art Nouveau times and to his home in Paris, and perfect for Sarah Bernhardt's image. Even better, poster art was the way modern art was going to be seen by a wide range of people, people who didn't have enough money to buy original art and may not have had the time or inclination to spend time in galleries.
But who was Jewish in Mucha's family - mum Amalie Mala or dad Andreas Mucha? Or perhaps one or more of the grandparents. Alphonse was indeed arrested by the Gestapo in 1939, but the Germans did not seem to find anything in the artist's history to hold their attention.
Hi bazza,
Nice poster. I hadn't heard of Mucha before, but the style of painting sort of reminded me of Aubrey Beardsley.
All the Best,
David.
Jim: I have seen very little of his original art but there is plenty available in very popular reproduction; he has a wide appeal. I would really like to see an exhibition like the one you saw in The Taipei History Museum.
Hels: He really is the epitome of Art Nouveau. The age of mechanical reproduction really did bring art to the masses. There is a very useful essay on this topic by Walter Benjamin.
As for Mucha's Jewish background, I couldn't find much but did learn that his mother was very religious and, I think, Catholic. It must have a bit more distant!
David: I also really enjoy the work of Aubrey Beardsley, who was of course, a very typical practitioner of the Art Nouveau style. I am sure you will have seen Mucha's work before even if you didn't know his name!
I'll often go to shows on poster art. I don't find them inferior at all
Joanne: Good thing too! It deserves more recognition.
Hi Bazza - I was going to say I didn't know about his art ... but am sure I'd have seen it - as he has such a distinct style. Fascinating artist and the fact he's come back into fashion ... great knowing about him ... cheers Hilary
Hilary: You would recognise his work anywhere now I think! I thought he was more well known so I am happy to have brought his work to your attention.
Love his art, and a great deal of that style too. I haven't seen any originals, but in the same vein I have seen some of Gustav Klimt's original paintings and it was fascinating to see the real colours compared to the ones exaggerated and messed about with on so many of the posters and prints you see for sale.
AC: Klimt comes under the Art Nouveau umbrella too and is also very popular for poster reproductions. It's often the case that, when you see an original piece of art that you are already familiar with, that it looks so much more impressive.
Hi Bazza - I'm sure I've seen his work as you say ... but I'm very non- artist knowledgeable - that's why I like blogging so much ... I pick up things like here - and then can increase my knowledge ... like Kustodiev - when I saw a work by him at the Royal Academy Russian art exhibition ... I knew who he was - not much more .. but I live and learn. Cheers Hilary
Hello Hilary, I'm sure that to continue learning keeps us all young!
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