Alphonse Mucha is acclaimed for his distinctly stylized and decorative Art Nouveau illustrated posters and prints — particularly those depicting beautiful French actress and famous artists’ muse Sarah Bernhardt. His work remains widely loved by everyone from bohemian students to serious collectors.
Mucha and his contemporaries treated femininity as the antidote to the impersonal, masculine world of the industrial revolution — it was to be celebrated and embraced. He fervently believed that art is a crucial, enjoyable benefit to humankind, and it should be accessible to as many people as possible.
Mucha showed an early talent for drawing. Rejected when he applied to the Academy of Fine Arts in Prague in 1878, he traveled to Vienna — two years later at the age of 19 — and found work painting theater backdrops. After a tragic fire that destroyed the theater that employed him, he returned home and began painting portraits. Count Eduard Khuen Belasi hired Mucha to paint a series of murals for his residence.
In 1885, the Count sent Mucha to the Munich Academy of Fine Arts — paying his tuition and living expenses. Mucha moved to Paris in 1888 to continue his studies, where he shared a studio with Paul Gauguin. There, he became enamored with the nude female form and allegorical studies. He enjoyed some financial success with magazine illustration work, which led to lucrative book illustration commissions. One of Mucha’s illustrations for the book Scenes and Episodes of German History received a medal of honor at the 1894 Paris Salon of Artists.
In 1894, Mucha began a six-year contract for the acclaimed stage actress Sarah Bernhardt, creating posters for her shows and tours. His first poster was an immediate sensation and cemented his fame in the Art Nouveau poster artist community.
Mucha designed some of the most famous posters of the era — a time when these works were key to the fabric of the cosmopolitan thoroughfare in the French capital. He created advertisements for JOB cigarette papers, Ruinart champagne, Lefèvre-Utile biscuits and Moët-Chandon champagne. Although Mucha is renowned for his posters, he spent the latter half of his life on decorative panel works and Czech nationalist artworks — many of them in the collection at the Mucha Museum in Prague.
Find original Alphonse Mucha nude prints, figurative prints, wall decorations and other art on 1stDibs.
Flirt (Biscuits Lefevre-Utile) Lithograph Poster
By Alphonse Mucha
Located in Palm Beach, FL
Alphonse Mucha was a painter and decorative artist best known for the sensual Art Nouveau paintings, posters, and advertisements that came to define Art Nouveau in fin de siècle Pari...
Lithograph
$45,000
Hamlet
By Alphonse Mucha
Located in Fort Washington, PA
Poster of Sarah Bernhart Playing Hamlet. Paris. Mint condition. Linen-backed. Sarah Bernhardt's groundbreaking portrayal of Hamlet, performed in French, is masterfully captured in Alphonse Mucha's poster. Mucha emphasizes the play's themes of vengeance and mortality, depicting the ghost of Hamlet's murdered father haunting the ramparts of Elsinore in the background, while the tragic drowned Ophelia, adorned with flowers, rests in a coffin-like panel at Hamlet’s feet. This powerful image marks Mucha's final poster commission that depicts the celebrated French actress. The vintage poster is linen-backed and is in excellent condition. Bernhardt famously played Hamlet in 1899, becoming the first woman to embody the role on stage and later in a film adaptation. Her bold interpretation challenged conventional gender roles and pushed the boundaries of performance, establishing her as a pioneer in both theater and early cinema...
Paper
$1,250
H 12.5 in W 9.75 in D 0.75 in
Cornucopia (limited edition hardback monograph hand signed by Damien Hirst)
By Damien Hirst
Located in New York, NY
Damien Hirst Cornucopia, 2010 Limited edition hardback monograph (hand signed by Damien Hirst) Hand signed in ink by Damien Hirst on the first front end page 12 1/2 × 9 3/4 × 3/4 inches This limited edition illustrated hardback monograph, with no dust jacket, exactly as issued, was published on the occasion of the artist's show at Musee Oceanographique de Monaco in April 2010, 'Cornucopia' celebrates Hirst's paintings and sculptures from 1994-2009." This book was gifted by Damien Hirst to a member of an American Rock & Roll band that Hirst befriended. Stated Limited Edition of 2000 (unnumbered) About the book: Publisher: Musée Océanographique de Monaco, 2010 Text: English / French. 160 pgs with color illustrations Limited Edition: 2000 (the regular edition is not signed; this was exceptionally hand signed by Hirst) About Damien Hirst: People are afraid of change, so you create a kind of belief for them through repetition. It’s like breathing. I’ve always been drawn to series and pairs. A unique thing is quite a frightening object. —Damien Hirst Since emerging onto the international art scene in the late 1980s, Damien Hirst has created installations, sculptures, paintings, and drawings that examine the complex relationships between art and beauty, religion and science, and life and death. From serialized paintings of multicolored spots to animal specimens...
Paper, Ink, Mixed Media, Lithograph, Offset
$29,175
H 11.03 in W 14.18 in D 1.19 in
Vitraux pour Jérusalem - Illustrated Book by M. Chagall, 1962
By Marc Chagall
Located in Roma, IT
"Vitraux pour Jerusalem" is one of the most important books illustrated by Marc Chagall and considered as one of his editorial masterpieces. Th...
Paper, Lithograph
The Dog Show
By David Hockney
Located in London, GB
Measures 71.5 x 49.5 cm. Never framed. An original exhibition poster from the 1990s that features Hockney's artwork of his beloved Stanley and Boodge. David Hockney (born 1937) is...
Paper, Lithograph
$1,157
H 30.01 in W 20.01 in
The Arrival of Spring, Normandy Royal Academy Exhibition Poster
By David Hockney
Located in London, GB
The Arrival of Spring, Normandy No.340 exhibition poster. Published by the Royal Academy, London. 2020. 76.2 x 50.8 cm. During the pandemic, Hockney created 116 artworks that capture...
Paper, Lithograph
$1,702
H 30.01 in W 20.01 in
The Arrival of Spring Royal Academy Exhibition Posters Full Set
By David Hockney
Located in London, GB
Full set of four The Arrival of Spring, Normandy exhibition posters. Published by the Royal Academy, London. 2020. Each 76.2 x 50.8 cm. During the pandemic, Hockney created 116 artwo...
Paper, Lithograph
$1,839
H 35.2 in W 10.01 in
Remember That You Cannot Look at The Sun or Death For Very Long
By David Hockney
Located in London, GB
Lithographic poster with a yellow silk screen overlay on 170gsm paper. Released by CIRCA in 2021. Limited edition of 3,000 prints. 89.4 x 25.4 cm. The print comes with a stamped dat...
Paper, Lithograph
Vase with Narcissus
By Daum
Located in PARIS, FR
Vase with Narcissus by DAUM A vase raised on pedestal with a narcissus plaques decor Multilayer blown-molded glass, colored by vitrification of powders With an acid-etched decor in...
Blown Glass
$350
H 11.75 in W 15 in D 2 in
Rare Judaica Chevron Bezalel Zeev Raban Chromolithograph (made in Palestine)
By Zeev Raban
Located in Surfside, FL
Jerusalem's Bezalel School The Bezalel Academy of Arts and Design, was founded in 1906 by Boris Schatz. In 1903, Schatz met Theodore Herzl and became an ardent Zionist. At the Zionis...
Lithograph
Return of the Jedi 1983 Original Vintage Poster
Located in London, GB
Return of the Jedi 1983 Original Vintage Poster measures 27×41" inches / 68 x 104 cm unfolded rolled excellent condition Return of the Jedi (also known as Star Wars: Episode VI ...
Paper, C Print
Soufflé Vase with Crocus
By Émile Gallé
Located in PARIS, FR
Soufflé Vase with Crocus by Etablissements GALLE Vase with semi-flat shape, Multi-layer blown glass decorated with acid-etched blue-purple crocus flowers on a yellow background. S...
Blown Glass
Bowl "Marquetry with Crocus"
By Émile Gallé
Located in PARIS, FR
Bowl "Marquetry with Crocus" by Emile GALLE (1846-1904) An elongated form bowl, with hot-applied handles. Multi-layered blown-molded glass, with an inlaid decor of purple and orang...
Blown Glass
$1,225
H 11.23 in W 8.86 in D 0.4 in
Thomas l’Imposteur - Vintage Rare Book Illustrated by Jean Cocteau - 1927
By Jean Cocteau
Located in Roma, IT
Thomas l’Imposteur is an original modern rare book illustrated by Jean Cocteau (Maisons-Laffitte, 1889 – Milly-la-Forêt, 1963) in 1927. Published by Gallimard NRF, Paris. Original...
Paper, Lithograph