1896 Original French Art Nouveau Poster, Maitres de L'affiche (Plate 46) - Mothu et Doria PL46 - Steinlen

1896 Original French Art Nouveau Poster, Maitres de L'affiche (Plate 46) - Mothu et Doria PL46 - Steinlen

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Date: 1896
Size:  11.5 x 15 inches
Artist: Steinlen, Theophile

About The Poster: This piece has been called one of the fore-runners of the modern poster - it is simple, it is elegant, and it has all the makings of a fine advertising print. Indeed, if it were to be presented today at an advertising meeting, there is little doubt it would be accepted for a print ad. The Maitre de l'affiche posters were a collection sent to poster aficionados and subscribers just before the turn of the last century (roughly 1896-1900). 

THIS IS AN ORIGINAL POSTER AND NOT A REPRODUCTION. IT IS PART OF THE COLLECTION OF THE MAITRE DE L'AFFICHE AND IS EMBOSSED WITH THE SEAL OF THE MAITRE. 

By the 1890s the streets of every great metropolis were enlivened by large colourful posters . The poster had not only caught the fancy of the broad public, but its best examples were already being regarded as works of art (specifically, as fine prints) to be exhibited, reviewed in journals, collected and reprinted in a manageable form. In the last five years of the century, the Imprimerie Chaix was to play great part in codifying, hallowing and perpetuating the ebullient period of 'La Belle Epoque.' It was in those years that the firm published 'Les Maitres de l'Affiche' (Masters of the Poster) reduced lithographic versions, in authentic colours, of the best posters of Europe and America, by more than 90 great artists, posters that bring the period to life.'

Of Steinlen, Wikipedia writes: "Théophile Alexandre Steinlen, (1859 –1923), was a Swiss-born French Art Nouveau painter and printmaker. Steinlen became a regular contributor to Le Rire and Gil Blas magazines plus numerous other publications including L'Assiette au Beurre and Les Humouristes, a short-lived magazine he and a dozen other artists jointly founded in 1911. Between 1883 and 1920, he produced hundreds of illustrations, some which were done under a pseudonym to avoid political problems due to their harsh criticisms of societal ills. Today, his works can be found at many important museums around the world including at the Hermitage Museum in St. Petersburg, Russia. and the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C., United States."
Please note that currently, we have two copies of this Maitres - one framed, and this one, unframed.