Skip to main content
Want more images or videos?
Request additional images or videos from the seller
1 of 8

Maxime Dethomas
1896 illustrated program by Maxime Dethomas - Théâtre de l'oeuvre

1898

$1,019.30
£758.26
€850
CA$1,395.77
A$1,551.91
CHF 810.32
MX$18,890.52
NOK 10,339.35
SEK 9,687.48
DKK 6,470.58
Shipping
Retrieving quote...
The 1stDibs Promise:
Authenticity Guarantee,
Money-Back Guarantee,
24-Hour Cancellation

About the Item

This rare and beautifully composed theatre program from 1896 showcases the distinctive visual voice of Maxime Dethomas, one of the most refined illustrators of the Belle Époque. Created for a multi-play evening at Théâtre de l’Œuvre, the program is a glowing example of Art Nouveau design, steeped in the Symbolist spirit that defined the theatre’s groundbreaking vision. Dethomas’s composition here is split between two arresting panels. On the left, a languid, stylized female figure peers introspectively beneath looping typography promoting the Revue encyclopédique Larousse, evoking the intersection between intellectualism and aestheticism. The right side presents a bold, mythological nude draped in an organic swirl of smoke or hair, a quintessential motif of Symbolist allegory. The linework is spontaneous yet deliberate, capturing both theatrical sensuality and spiritual elevation. The list of performances—Une Mère, Brocéliande, Les Flaireurs, and Des mots ! Des mots !—illustrates the eclectic and experimental programming of Lugné-Poe’s Théâtre de l’Œuvre, which championed new voices and radical forms. These plays, unified by their departure from traditional realism, are supported by Dethomas’s visionary illustration, which provides a visual prologue to the poetic and abstract tone of the performances. Printed in a limited run and designed as a folding playbill, this piece served both a promotional and artistic purpose. Dethomas’s collaboration with the theatre placed him at the very heart of Paris’s modernist movement, working alongside figures like Redon, Gide, and Maeterlinck. Today, original illustrated programs from L’Œuvre—especially those signed by Dethomas—are highly sought after by collectors of Symbolist ephemera and early 20th-century graphic design. This particular example encapsulates the radical energy of a theatre that transformed the French stage, wrapped in the sensuous lines of one of its greatest visual interpreters. Theater - Avant-Garde - France Ref : Aitken 79
  • Creator:
    Maxime Dethomas (1867 - 1929, French)
  • Creation Year:
    1898
  • Dimensions:
    Height: 12.6 in (32 cm)Width: 20.08 in (51 cm)
  • Medium:
  • Period:
  • Condition:
    Good condition, small tears.
  • Gallery Location:
    PARIS, FR
  • Reference Number:
    1stDibs: LU1792216431662

More From This Seller

View All
1898 illustrated program by Maxime Dethomas - théâtre de l'oeuvre
By Maxime Dethomas
Located in PARIS, FR
This exceptional 1898 illustrated program by Maxime Dethomas was created for La Victoire, a five-act tragedy by Saint-Georges de Bouhélier, presented at the legendary Théâtre de l’Œu...
Category

1890s Prints and Multiples

Materials

Paper, Lithograph

Original 1895 illustrated program by Abel Truchet for La Fumée, puis la Flamme
By Francis Abel Truchet
Located in PARIS, FR
This original 1895 illustrated program, created by Abel Truchet for La Fumée, puis la Flamme, a play by Joseph Caraguel, stands as a testament to the radical spirit of Le Théâtre Lib...
Category

1890s Prints and Multiples

Materials

Paper, Lithograph

1892 Rare illustrated program by Henri-Gabriel Ibels for the Théâtre Libre
By Henri Gabriel Ibels
Located in PARIS, FR
This rare illustrated program, created in 1892 by Henri-Gabriel Ibels, is a vivid artifact from the vibrant and avant-garde world of Le Théâtre Libre, the influential Parisian theatr...
Category

1890s Prints and Multiples

Materials

Paper, Lithograph

Original 1893 illustrated program by Henri-Gabriel Ibels for Le Théâtre Libre
By Henri Gabriel Ibels
Located in PARIS, FR
This original 1893 illustrated program by Henri-Gabriel Ibels is a remarkable survival from the pioneering days of Le Théâtre Libre, André Antoine’s radical theatrical collective tha...
Category

1890s Prints and Multiples

Materials

Paper, Lithograph

1892 illustrated program by Henri-Gabriel Ibels for the Théâtre libre
Located in PARIS, FR
This striking 1892 illustrated program by Henri-Gabriel Ibels represents a rare surviving artifact from the golden age of Le Théâtre Libre, the pioneering independent theatre led by ...
Category

1890s Prints and Multiples

Materials

Paper, Lithograph

1898 illustrated program by Alfredo Müller - Théâtre de l’Œuvre
By Alfredo Müller
Located in PARIS, FR
This rare 1898 illustrated program by the Italian-born artist Alfredo Müller captures the essence of Paris’s Symbolist theatre at the close of the 19th century. Issued for the fourth...
Category

1890s Prints and Multiples

Materials

Paper, Lithograph

You May Also Like

1897 Gisbert Combaz 'La Libre Esthetique'
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Paper Size: 11.5 x 8.25 inches ( 29.21 x 20.955 cm ) Image Size: 8 x 3.25 inches ( 20.32 x 8.255 cm ) Framed: No Condition: A: Mint Additional Details: First printing Lithogra...
Category

19th Century Art Nouveau Prints and Multiples

Materials

Lithograph

1897 After Emile Berchmans 'L'Art Independant'
By Émile Berchmans
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Paper Size: 11.5 x 8.25 inches ( 29.21 x 20.955 cm ) Image Size: 7.75 x 6 inches ( 19.685 x 15.24 cm ) Framed: No Condition: A: Mint Additional Details: First printing Lithogr...
Category

19th Century Art Deco Prints and Multiples

Materials

Lithograph

Imprimerie National Mvsiqve/Dessines et Gravure/Affiches Artistiques.
By Jean Leonce Burret
Located in New York, NY
Burret, Jean-Leonce. Imprimerie National Mvsiqve/Dessines et Gravure/Affiches Artistiques. Bruxelles Ca.1898, Color lithograph. 33.5 x 24.5; image, 34.75 x 26; on linen. Burret was ...
Category

1890s Art Nouveau Figurative Prints

Materials

Lithograph

1897 After Armand Rassenfosse 'L'Art Independant'
By Armand Rassenfosse
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Paper Size: 11.5 x 8.25 inches ( 29.21 x 20.955 cm ) Image Size: 8.5 x 6 inches ( 21.59 x 15.24 cm ) Framed: No Condition: A: Mint Additional Details: First printing Lithograp...
Category

19th Century Art Nouveau Prints and Multiples

Materials

Lithograph

L'Andalouise au Temps des Maures
By Jules Chéret
Located in Spokane, WA
Original L'Andalouise au Temps des Maures vintage art nouveau poster. L'Andalousie au Temps des Maures. Exposition de 1900. Imprimerie C...
Category

1890s Art Nouveau Portrait Prints

Materials

Lithograph

Le Rire - Illustrated Magazine after Pierre-Georges Jeanniot - 1906
Located in Roma, IT
Le Rire is a Comic Magazine published in june 1906, reproducing  in lithographs the drawings by Pierre-Georges Jeanniot (1848–1934).
Category

1890s Modern More Art

Materials

Paper