Alphonse Mucha

Summer (1899) by Alphonse Mucha (from The Magazine of Art)

Alphonse Mucha (1860-1939) was born on July 24,1860. He was a Czech Art Nouveau painter and decorative artist. He produced many paintings, illustrations, advertisements, postcards, and designs. He was one of the most important artists in the movement  known as Art Nouveau (French for "new art"), which was most popular from about 1890-1910 and his distinctive style was highly influential and often imitated.

Self Portrait by Mucha (1907) (courtesy of  wikiart.org)

Art Nouveau embraced asymmetrical, curved, flowing and often undulating lines, inspired by natural forms and structures, such as those of flowers and plants.

Carnation by Mucha (courtesy of  wikiart.org)

Art Nouveau designs were applied to the graphic arts and print media, as well as architecture, lighting, jewelry, textiles, furniture and ceramics. Everyday objects of the period, such as silverware and cigarette cases, often reflect this style as well.

Art Nouveau Wall Cabinet by Louis Majorelle (Late 19th Century) (link)

The Art Nouveau style was most popular in Europe, and was known by many different names, including Jugendstil in Germany and Scandinavia; Stile Floreale and Stile Liberty in Italy; and Tiffany Style in the United States, because of its association with stained glass artist Louis Comfort Tiffany.

The Tree of Life by Louis Comfort Tiffany (link)

Born in Ivančice, Moravia (currently part of the Czech Republic), Alphonse Mucha initially worked doing decorative painting, primarily painting theater scenery in Moravia and then in Vienna, Austria from 1879-1881. He returned to Moravia in 1881, and did freelance decorative and portrait painting. He was hired by Count Karl Khuen of Mikulov to decorate Hrušovany Emmahof Castle with murals. The Count was impressed with Mucha's work, and agreed to sponsor his formal training at the Munich Academy of Fine Arts.

Amethyst by Mucha (courtesy of  wikiart.org)

Mucha moved to Paris in 1887, and continued his studies at Académie Julian and Académie Colarossi. In addition to his studies, he produced many magazine and advertising illustrations over the next several years.

Advertising Poster by Mucha (1899)
(courtesy of  wikiart.org)

Advertising Poster by Mucha (1896)
(courtesy of  wikiart.org)

Advertising Poster by Mucha (1897) (courtesy of  wikiart.org)

He designed an advertising poster for a play featuring Sarah Bernhardt, the most famous actress at the time in Paris. The advertisement for the play, Gismonda by Victorien Sardou was posted in the city on January 1, 1895, and it attracted positive attention. Sarah Bernhardt was so satisfied with the success of this first poster that she began a six-year contract with Mucha.

Gismonda by Mucha (1894) (link)

In Paris, Mucha found success by producing numerous paintings, posters, advertisements, and book illustrations, as well as designs for jewelry, carpets, wallpaper, and theatre sets. Mucha's work was featured prominently at the 1900 Universal Exhibition in Paris, during which he decorated the Bosnia and Herzegovina Pavilion and collaborated with decorating the Austrian Pavilion.

Austria by Mucha (1900) (courtesy of  wikiart.org)

Mucha used pastel colors in many of his works, which contrasted sharply with the bright colors favored by other poster artists of that time.  His works frequently featured beautiful young women in flowing robes, often wearing flowers in their hair, with flowers sometimes forming halos behind their heads.

Illustration by Mucha (1897) (link)

Calendar--Champagne by Mucha (1897) (courtesy of  wikiart.org)

Calendar--Cherry Blossom (1898) (courtesy of  wikiart.org)

Mucha was often frustrated by gaining fame through his commercial art. He believed that art existed only to communicate a spiritual message, and he wanted to concentrate on artistic projects that were of more importance to him. In addition to his poster art and illustrations, he created sculptures, designs for stained glass, and paintings which depicted historical, mythological and religious scenes.

The Judgment of Paris by Mucha (1895) (courtesy of  wikiart.org)

Mucha spent many years working on what he considered his life's fine art masterpiece, The Slav Epic. It was created as a celebration of Slavic history and given to the city of Prague in 1928. Since 2012, the series has been on display at the National Gallery's Veletržní Palace in Prague.

The Introduction of the Slavonic Liturgy by Mucha (1912) (courtesy of  wikiart.org)

Mucha was married in 1906, in Prague. He and his wife Maruška visited the U.S. from 1906 to 1910. Their daughter Jaroslava was born in New York City. They also had a son, Jiří, born in 1915 in Prague. He later became a journalist, writer, screenwriter, author of autobiographical novels and studies of the works of his father.

Mucha Illustrations from The New York Daily News (1904) (courtesy of  wikiart.org)

After returning to live in Prague, Alphonse Mucha decorated the Theater of Fine Arts, and created murals in the Mayor's Office at the Municipal House, and at other landmarks around the city. When Czechoslovakia won its independence after World War I, Mucha designed postage stamps, banknotes, and other government documents.


 

Alphonse Mucha Designed Artwork on a 1920 Czechoslovakian 100 Korun Note (Courtesy of National Numismatic Collection, National Museum of American History at the Smithsonian Institution (link)

With the rise of fascism during the late 1930s, Mucha's works and his Slavic nationalism were denounced in the press as "reactionary". When German troops moved into Czechoslovakia during the spring of 1939, Mucha was among the first to be arrested by the Gestapo. During his interrogation, he developed pneumonia. Though released eventually, he died in Prague on 14 July 1939, due to lung infection, and was buried there.

Alphonse Mucha's Stained Glass Window in St. Vitus Cathedral Inside Prague Castle Photo by Clayton Tang (link)

Although Mucha's style enjoys great popularity today, at the time when he died, it was considered outdated. His son, author Jiří Mucha, devoted much of his life to writing about him and bringing attention to his artwork. In his own country, there was not much interest for many years. The Slav Epic was rolled and stored for twenty-five years after his death before being displayed publicly, and eventually a Mucha museum was opened in Prague, managed by his grandson John Mucha.

Day by Mucha (courtesy of  wikiart.org)

The Moon by Mucha (courtesy of  wikiart.org)

Mucha's work has continued to experience periodic revivals of interest for illustrators and artists. During the 1960s, Mucha's distinctive art Nouveau style heavily influenced psychedelic poster art. And today, his work continues to inspire, and is appreciated worldwide for its graceful and timeless beauty.

Evening Reverie-Nocturnal Slumber by Mucha (1898) (courtesy of  wikiart.org)

^{Biographical information paraphrased from wikipedia.com https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alphonse_Mucha}
 

Norman Rockwell (1894-1978)

Norman Rockwell Illustration From Red Cross Magazine (1918)

Norman Rockwell was a prolific American artist who was born on February 3, 1894. He is most famous for his numerous cover illustrations for magazines including The Saturday Evening Post, Boy's Life, Literary Digest, Leslie's Weekly, The Country Gentleman, Life and Look. His work included illustrations for books, posters and advertisements, and usually featured sweet and wholesome scenes of children, families, and daily life. Although he was not considered a serious artist by many critics, due to his idealized and sentimentalized portrayal of American life, his work was and remains extremely popular. Prints of his illustrations still decorate many homes, offices and public places, and his name is widely recognized. 

Norman Rockwell (1921) (Courtesy of Library of Congress)

In later years, he began to paint more serious subjects, focusing on issues close to his heart, including human rights, racism and poverty.  He painted posters to raise money for war bonds and for charitable causes, and he was commissioned to paint portraits of famous figures including U.S Presidents and other world leaders. 

Poster 1940-Courtesy of Library of Congress

 

His famous Four Freedoms series was painted in 1943, during WWII, which illustrated the four human rights which President Franklin Roosevelt identified in his 1941 State of the Union Address as essential human rights that needed to be protected: Freedom of Speech, Freedom of Religion, Freedom from Want and Freedom from Fear. These images are not in the public domain, and so are not pictured here. For more information and to view these pictures, please click on the following link: 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Four_Freedoms_%28Norman_Rockwell%29

The Problem We All Live With is an iconic 1964 painting that depicts a young African American girl during the process of racial desegregation in the south. On her way to her previously all-white school, she is being escorted by deputy U.S marshals due to threats of violence. To view this painting and for more information, please click on the following link: 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Problem_We_All_Live_With

Below are some beautiful examples of Norman Rockwell's early work from magazine covers of  the 1910s and 1920s.

 

source

 

source

Love of Vintage Magazines

Good Housekeeping Magazine, Cover by Coles Phillips, Dec. 1914

I have always had a passion for vintage paper ephemera--magazines, newspapers, advertisements, tickets, menus, recipe cards, etc....the little pieces of everyday life that are usually thrown away and forgotten, but which are such a revealing part of people's lives. 

Collier's Magazine, Cover by Jessie Wilcox Smith, Dec. 1914

When looking through old magazines in particular, I find myself reading the same articles that people read 50, 100, 150 years ago, and it is like looking through a magic window to another time. I have a large collection of my own magazines, and I also enjoy reading the ones that have been preserved online.

The Saturday Evening Post Cover by Harrison Fisher, May 1912

I enjoy reading about historical, political and world events when they were contemporary. First person accounts and editorials give different perspectives on issues, and shed light on what life was like for ordinary people. Many articles can be found in vintage magazines that discuss topics of interest such as life during the World Wars, family life, women's issues, and popular art and music.

From The Ladies Home Journal, January 1913

I can study vintage fashion trends, and learn how clothes were made in various periods. I can discover forgotten crochet patterns and try old recipes. I can read fiction and poetry from often long-forgotten authors, and I can read human interest stories from the point of view of real people from the past. 

Hairstyles of 1913, Ladies' Home Journal, Feb. 1913

And I can enjoy the same wonderful illustrations that graced the covers and appeared in articles and ads so long ago. Many of the covers and ads feature the beautiful art of artists from the Golden Age of Illustration such as Harrison Fisher, Coles Phillips, and Jessie Wilcox Smith, and are highly collectible in good condition. Often, unfortunately, for this reason, many vintage magazines have covers and/or pages missing.

Life Magazine Cover by Coles Phillips, Sept. 1921

Long before the internet, and in an age where not everyone had a telephone, magazines were an especially important lifeline for people, and formed a unique type of community among their readers. They forged a connection to the wider world, and provided entertainment, inspiration and education for people of all ages. Women's magazines, even into the 1970s and 1980s, often connected readers who hoped to exchange old issues, recipes and patterns, or who were looking for pen-pals with similar interests.

Ladies' Home Journal Cover by Coles Phillips, Oct. 1921

This letter to the editor of the Ladies' Home Journal from 1913, illustrates the importance of that magazine to a woman and her husband who lived through difficult times in a rural area:

Little Journal Stories From Life--The Story of a Journal Girl

Five years ago I married and with my...husband fared forth into the golden West. Together we had watched the sunset on the night he asked me, and something of its glory was in both our hearts exulting as our lips met. We knew then that in the West lay our destiny; and oh, how bravely we went forth hand in hand and singing as we went! It was the day before our wedding that my big brother, who had always been sort of a fairy godfather to me, came to me and asked what gift he could make me that, in my new home away out on a Dakota ranch, would really mean the most of all to me. I was sitting by the window in my room...and Mother's (Ladies' Home) Journal was on my lap.

     Looking up at him, I said: "Jim, do you really want to know?"

     "I sure do, Sis," he replied.

    And when I told him, he laughed, for "Then give me a five years' subscription to the Ladies' Home Journal," was what I said.

     So it came about that, when I stepped foot into the old house that my boy husband had found for me in that golden West of our golden dreams, it was the then current issue of The Journal that greeted me. For three years in that lonely ranch, remote from neighbors, through seasons of drought and blight and blizzard, of bounding hopes dashed overnight to earth, it was The Journal--just a magazine--that cheered us both and put bravery into our hearts and happiness into our faces when the world about was gray and gloomy. For, after all our dreams, that Dakota ranch was not our rainbow's end.

     Imagine, if you can, a boy and girl couple, both used to the little nice things of life, going forth as pioneers into an unknown land and finding themselves living in an old house whose walls for the greater part had been papered, five years before, with pages cut from wall-paper sample books, so that each room presented a crazy-quilt effect. What should we do with our carload of wedding furniture and pictures and things in such a house? The nearest town was too far away for us to depend for assistance on any workman it might contain, so my husband and I and The Journal did it all ourselves.

   I had been an office girl; now I was not only a wife, but also the mistress of an establishment in which I must cater to... fourteen hired men...But here again The Journal helped. 

    And then one day my husband fell ill as a result of exposure--the very day the blizzard broke and I was left alone with him! How I fought my way to the barns and fed the stock throughout the days is a story of itself; but I did it--somehow. Yet in spite of the hardships we suffered those three years the bird in my heart kept on singing, because The Ladies' Home Journal made it sing. The Journal served as a companion, public library, woman's club and lecture course all combined; but most of all it served as friend--a friend with a hand always outstretched to help and a word of cheer when the clouds were grayest...

--F.J., from  The Ladies' Home Journal, March 1913