Original Art Deco Vintage Poster 1920s Cachou Lajaunie - Cappiello
Date: 1920s
Size: 39 x 59
Notes: Poster, Oversize, Lithograph, Linen Backed
Artist: Capiello, Leonetto
Information: For more details, please call 514 656 3301
About The Poster: Cappiello is considered to be one of the greatest posterists of his age. Cappiello's approach was always image association - the idea that you don't really remember the image of the product itself, but the image of something is associated with the product ... Cappiello was the first who thoroughly understood this, and he applied it with considerable diligence in about a thousand posters.'(Rennert) Born and raised in Livorno, Italy, Cappiello knew at a young age that he would be an artist. In his youth, Cappiello drew caricatures and sketches, which proved he had a natural talent and an ambition that would eventually lead him to Paris in pursuit of his dream. Encouraged by his brother, who was living in Paris at the time, Cappiello endeavored to sell his caricatures to magazines that would pay and support his art. He was so ambitious that he even approached Giacomo Puccini, the composer to ask if he could sketch him. He was successful and managed to submit the images to Le Rire magazine. Soon after, Cappiello became a sought after cartoonist and caricaturist. His style, simple lines with strong colors and an equally strong product message was evident in some of the first commissions he received: an 1899 album of pochoirs depicting famous actresses of the age shows clearly that even as a young man Cappiello had already developed a style which he would use, with incredible results, throughout his creative life. Cappiello's portraits and posters were playful and unique, a quality that bred his success. His illustrations were clean and simple, crossing the boundaries from Belle Epoque through to Art Noveau to the more modernist approach of Art Deco while still combining styles from previous eras. Because of the simplicity of his graphics, Cappiello was able to produce nearly 1000 posters in his time and was an inspiration to many lithographers to follow. His work is sought after today and may be found in galleries and museums throughout the world. 'In Cappiello's later years, caricature, now more polished and refined, makes an appearance every now and again. This second poster for Cachou Lajaunie . . . a breath freshener to counteract the effects of her cigarette, gets our attention with a woman in a startling dress decorated with large sequins in shades reminiscent of autumn foliage' (Cappiello/Rennert, p. 196). 'The pharmacist, Leon Lajaunie, set up his pharmacy in Toulouse. After developing several invigorating elixirs, he turned to cachou, as an aromatic for perfuming the breath whose strong flavor covered smoker's breath' (Health Posters, p. 169).
