René Gaillard

"Cocaine" Poster by René Gaillard

c. 1926

Published by F. Champenois, Paris. "Bénédictine shows two girls pressing flowers amid book leaves, to remind us of the herbs that go into making the liqueur; the bottom part of the poster has a panorama of the Fecamp Abbey where the drink originated. Around 1510, one of the monks, Dom Bernardo Vincelli, prepared a liqueur using local wine and native herbs found in nearby woods, together with a few imported ingredients including muscat, ginger, clove and cardamom" (Wine Spectator, 70). As with all poster this size, the lithograph was made, in color, on two panels and joined at the center. Alphonse Mucha was a painter and decorative artist best known for the sensual Art...

Hand-colored Stone Lithograph on Japon; Aquatint.

Hand-colored Stone Lithograph on Japon; Aquatint.

Printed by Oscar Consee, Munich, 1922 Not much is known about this Stockholm-based cabaret act. Translating literally as Bat Man, we see a young dancer tease an oversized bat wearing a monocle -- a truly bizarre but beautiful design. (text by Jack Rennert) Walter Schnackenberg’s style changed several times during his long and successful career. Having studied in Munich, the artist traveled often to Paris where he fell under the spell of the Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec’s colorful and sensuous posters depicting theatrical and decadent subjects. Schnackenberg became a regular contributor of similar compositions to the German magazines Jugend and Simplicissimus before devoting himself to the design of stage scenery...

Lithograph printed by Albert Berger, Vienna. This design "was considered very advanced in 1899, with its large scale portrayal of the motif and the almost complete renunciation of interior drawing. The silhouette of the body is in mysterious contrast to the realistically portrayed head and hands. The unwavering gaze of the woman underlines the symbolism of the design: the Norn [ancient Norse goddess of fate] with the hour-glass and snake-ring embodies the eternal circle of life and the running out of time" (Vienna Secession, Denscher, p. 45). As the poster was originally used in 1899, the waning sand in the hourglass quite naturally can be assumed to be the coming of the end of the century. KOLOMAN MOSER: Instead of applying his flair and art education to paintings, Koloman Moser embodied the idea of Gesamt Kunstwerk (all-embracing art work) by designing architecture, furniture, jewelry, graphics, and tapestries meant to coordinate every detail of an environment. His work transcended the imitative decorative arts of earlier eras and helped to define Modernism for generations to come. Moser achieved a remarkable balance between intellectual structure (often geometric) and hedonistic luxury. Collaborating with Gustav Klimt and Josef Hoffmann, the artist was an editor and active contributor to Ver Sacrum, (Sacred Spring), the journal of the Viennese Secession that was so prized for its aesthetics and high quality production that it was considered a work of art. The magazine featured drawings and designs in the Jugendstil (Youth Style) along with literary contributions from distinguished writers from across Europe. It quickly disseminated both the spirit and the style of the Secession. In 1903 Moser and Hoffmann founded and led the Wiener Werkstatte (Viennese Workshop) a collective of artisans that produced elegant decorative arts items, not as industrial prototypes but for the purpose of sale to the public. The plan, as idealistic then as now, was to elevate the lives of consumers by means of beautiful and useful interior surroundings. Moser’s influence has endured throughout the century. His design sensibility is evident from the mid-century modern furniture of the 1950s and ‘60s to the psychedelic rock posters...

Alphonse Mucha worked mainly as a poster artist and became an influential figure of Art Nouveau in late 1890s, when poster illustrations were emerging as popular art form and new pri...

La Fille au Violon Color lithograph, gypsograph with embossed publisher's stamp Signed and numbered in ink (see photo) From: L'Estampe Originale, Paris, Vol. VII Published by Andre M...

BAC (Ferdinand Bach), 'Yvette Guilbert, Tous les Soirs SCALA', vintage color lithograph, 1893. Signed, dated, and titled in the stone. A superb, richl...

Cirage Jacquot et Cie is an 1886 chromolithograph of Lucien Lefèvre's delightful poster, printed at Imprimerie Chaix under the direction Ernest Maindron...

Le Cenacle is an 1897 chromolithograph of Victor Mignot's poster, printed at Imprimerie Chaix under the direction Ernest Maindron and G. Boudet for the lauded poster collection 'Les ...

Alcazar d'Hiver is an 1896 chromolithograph of Choubrac's brilliant poster, printed at Imprimerie Chaix under the direction Ernest Maindron and G. Boudet for the lauded poster collec...

Le Reve (The dream) An original theatre poster designed by Theophile Alexandre Steinlen for Le Reve at the Academie Nationale de Musique 96 x 76cm. (incl. frame) New white wood fram...