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.
L'art Photographique Cover by Alphonse Mucha, 1899
By Alphonse Mucha
Located in Bishop's Stortford, Hertfordshire
The editor of the publishing journal L'Art Photographique George Carre had stressed his intentions, but inability to have photographic covers for the journal. The talented Artist Alphonso Mucha...
Paper
Set of Two Mucha Foundation Art Nouveau Prints "Ivy" and "Laurel" AP 20/50.
By Alphonse Mucha
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Set of two beautiful Art Nouveau prints, "Ivy" (1901) and "Laurel" (1901), authorized by the Mucha Foundation, Prague. Each print is marked with the Foundation's official stamp and n...
Paper
Original Vintage Print by Harry Clarke. C.1920
Located in St Annes, Lancashire
Wonderful image by Harry Clarke Lithograph. Published C.1920 Unframed Free shipping
Paper
$104,242
H 33.86 in W 42.92 in D 0.04 in
Mucha, Waverley Cycles, Original Art Nouveau Belle Epoque Vintage Poster, 1898
By Alphonse Mucha
Located in SAINT-OUEN-SUR-SEINE, FR
Original Art Nouveau Vintage Poster dating from 1898 by Alphonse Mucha. Artist: Alphonse Mucha (1860-1939) Title: Waverley Cycles Date: 1898 Size (w x h): 33.9 x 42.9 in / 86 x 109 cm Printer: F. Champenois, 66 Bd St Michel, Paris. Materials and Techniques: Colour lithograph on paper Linen backing: Yes Condition: A (Designates a poster in very good condition. The colours are fresh and there are no or very few paper losses. If there are imperfections they are marginal and imperceptible). Additional Details: « Harry Reynaud, Directeur Général pour la France...
Paper
$80,000
H 71.5 in W 51.5 in D 2 in
Alphonse Mucha Bières De La Meuse 1897 Art Nouveau Lithograph Imp. F. Champenois
By Alphonse Mucha
Located in Keego Harbor, MI
An original color lithograph titled “Bières De La Meuse” Art Nouveau artist Alphonse Mucha. Printed in 1897, Imp. F. Champenois, Paris. “Republique Francaise” stamp marking top middl...
Paper
$80,000
H 71.5 in W 51.5 in D 2 in
Alphonse Mucha Bières De La Meuse 1897 Art Nouveau Lithograph Imp. F. Champenois
By Alphonse Mucha
Located in Keego Harbor, MI
An original color lithograph titled “Bières De La Meuse” Art Nouveau artist Alphonse Mucha. Printed in 1897, Imp. F. Champenois, Paris. “Republique Francaise” stamp marking top middl...
Paper
Alphonse Mucha Pair of "Byzantine Heads" Lithographs
By Alphonse Mucha
Located in New York, NY
A pair of French "Byzantine Heads" lithographs by Alphonse Mucha. The mastery evident in creating two archetypes of the female form against a decorative...
Giltwood, Paper
Alphonse Mucha "La Femme aux Iris" Watercolor and Gouache Study
By Alphonse Mucha
Located in New York, NY
This exquisite watercolor and gouache study of La Femme aux Iris (Woman with Irises) depicts a woman with vibrant ginger hair adorned with a crown of French bearded irises. Her left ...
Paper
Art Nouveau Alphonse Mucha Original JOB Poster, 1898
By Alphonse Mucha
Located in North Bergen, NJ
Alphonse Mucha 1898 JOB poster. Excellent condition with beautiful frame under plexiglass ready to hang. Poster for 'Job' cigarette paper (1898) 'JOB' is a ...
Paper
Original Vintage Print by Harry Clarke. C.1920
Located in St Annes, Lancashire
Wonderful image by Harry Clarke Lithograph. Published C.1920 Unframed Free shipping
Paper
Original Vintage Art Deco Print by Margery Lawrence, 1921.
Located in St Annes, Lancashire
Wonderful image by Margery Lawrence Tipped in plate. On green card Lithograph. Published 1921 The measurement given is the card size not the actual printed image.
Paper
$207Sale Price / set|30% Off
H 12.01 in W 9.65 in D 0.02 in
Set of Two Shell Prints Plate XCIII and XCV by Captain T. Brown, 1845
Located in Langweer, NL
Original hand-colored engravings from illustrations of the "Land and Fresh Water Conchology of Great Britain and Ireland," drawn and colored by Captain Thomas Brown...
Paper
Alphonse Mucha "Reverie" Lithograph
By Alphonse Mucha
Located in New York, NY
Titled "Reverie" (or "Dream"), this lithograph by Alphonse Mucha is one of his most noted and most desirable printed designs. The original use of the design was as an in-house poster...
Paper
$3,433
H 37.41 in W 37.41 in D 0.79 in
Framed Vintage Scarf by Picasso, Art Deco, Mid-20th Century, Signed
By Pablo Picasso
Located in Beirut, LB
Large colorful vintage scarf, featuring a woman with her new born with red blue yellow and white colors, on an abstract background Having the signature of the artist PICASSO on the ...
Wood, Fabric
Vintage French Wood Burning Wall Art Alphonse Mucha
By Alphonse Mucha
Located in Baltimore, MD
Vintage French wood burning wall art advertising the Job brand of cigarette papers. The artist was Alphonse Mucha and the work were published in 1896. France artist Mucha was famous for his commercial Art Nouveau posters and were the femme nouvelle or new woman a common theme. The new woman had a wide audience, but he also worked in a variety of other media. He mostly worked in Vienna. The densely patterned posters epitomize the Art Nouveau interest in natural forms, decoration, and a rejection of the anonymity of mechanical production. This artwork “JOB” is his most important one. The overview the major creative periods and highlight the greatest achievements by the artist. Job cigarette...
Wood
Alphonse Mucha French Art Nouveau Lithograph "Monaco Monte-Carlo"
By Alphonse Mucha
Located in New York, NY
French Art Nouveau "Monaco Monte-Carlo" lithograph by Alphonse Mucha, printed by F. Champenois, Paris. This work illustrates one of the most intricate color designs by the artist. Th...