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Alphonse Mucha | Art Nouveau painter


Czech painter, illustrator and graphic artist, Alphonse Maria Mucha (1860-1939) is most often remembered for the prominent role he played in shaping the aesthetics of French Art Nouveau at the turn of the century.
He produced illustrations, advertisements, decorative panels, and designs, which became among the best-known images of the period.


As a struggling and relatively unknown artist of Czech origin living in Paris, Mucha achieved immediate fame when, in December 1894, he accepted a commission to create a poster for one of the greatest actresses of this time, Sarah Bernhardt.
Though the printer was apprehensive about submitting Mucha´s final design because of its new unconventional style, Bernhardt loved it and so did the public.
In the second part of his career, at the age of 43, he returned to his homeland of Bohemia-Moravia region in Austria and devoted himself to painting a series of twenty monumental canvases known as The Slav Epic, depicting the history of all the Slavic peoples of the world, which he painted between 1912-1926.
In 1928, on the 10th anniversary of the independence of Czechoslovakia, he presented the series to the Czech nation. He considered it his most important work. It is now on display in Prague.
Awards
  • Legion of Honor (France);
  • Knight of the Order of Franz Joseph I (Austria).
Alphonse Maria Mucha 1860-1939 | Czech Art Nouveau Printmaker

Alphonse Maria Mucha 1860-1939 | Czech Art Nouveau Printmaker

Alphonse Maria Mucha 1860-1939 | Czech Art Nouveau Printmaker

Alphonse Maria Mucha 1860-1939 | Czech Art Nouveau Printmaker

Alphonse Maria Mucha 1860-1939 | Czech Art Nouveau Printmaker

Alphonse Maria Mucha 1860-1939 | Czech Art Nouveau Printmaker

Alphonse Maria Mucha 1860-1939 | Czech Art Nouveau Printmaker

Alphonse Maria Mucha 1860-1939 | Czech Art Nouveau Printmaker

Alphonse Maria Mucha 1860-1939 | Czech Art Nouveau Printmaker

Alphonse Maria Mucha 1860-1939 | Czech Art Nouveau Printmaker



























Alphonse Maria Mucha (1860-1939)è è stato un pittore e scultore Ceco. Viene ricordato per il ruolo di spicco che ha avuto nel plasmare l'estetica dell'Art Nouveau francese all'inizio del secolo. La produzione di Mucha comprende moltissime opere.
Fanno parte della sua copiosa produzione pannelli decorativi, cartelloni pubblicitari, manifesti teatrali (particolarmente importanti quelli per le recite della grande attrice Sarah Bernhardt, fra i quali la litografia per la Dame aux camelias), copertine per riviste, calendari, illustrazioni librarie ecc.
Ogni immagine è condotta in maniera estremamente raffinata: una linea nitida delimita tutte le sue figure -quasi sempre femminili (forse per la maggior eleganza delle loro forme), qualunque sia la posa che esse assumono.
I lavori di Mucha spesso raffigurano giovani donne in abiti dal taglio neoclassico, circondate da motivi floreali che formano cornici geometriche attorno alla figura.
Il suo stile venne subito imitato, nell'arte e nella pubblicità, con esiti raramente all'altezza dell'originale.