Alphonse Mucha

Born in 1860 in a small Czech town, Alphonse Mucha (1860-1939) was an artist on the forefront of Art Nouveau, the modernist movement that swept Paris in the 1910s, marking a return to the simplicity of natural forms, and changing the world of art and design forever. In fact, Art Nouveau was known to insiders as the “Mucha style” for the legions of imitators who adapted the master’s celebrated tableaux. Today, his distinctive depictions of lithe young women in classical dress have become a pop cultural touchstone, inspiring album covers, comic books, and everything in between. Patrick Bade and Victoria Charles offer readers an inspiring survey of Mucha’s career, illustrated with over one hundred lustrous images, from early Parisian advertisements and posters for Sandra Bernhardt, to the famous historical murals painted just before his death, at the age of 78, in 1939. Contents ART NOUVEAU The Origins of Art Nouveau England: Cradle of Art Nouveau Belgium: The Flowering of Art Nouveau France: A Passion for Art Nouveau Art Nouveau at the 1900 Universal Exposition in Paris The French Pavilion The English Pavilion The American Pavilion The Belgian Pavilion The German Pavilion The Austrian Pavilion The Hungarian Pavilion The Dutch Pavilion The Danish Pavilion The Swedish and Norwegian Pavilions The Russian Pavilion The Finnish Pavilion The Romanian Pavilion The Swiss Pavilion MUCHA Mucha and Art Nouveau Mucha and Art Nouveau Conclusion WORKS GRAPHIC WORKS Biography Bibliography Index