Mucha

Mucha — marelibri

DANSE

réf. 30007Bohemia Czech Republic: Johann Maresch. c.1898. Art Nouveau bas-relief siderolith plaque produced by Johann Maresch after 'Danse' one of four lithographs in Alphonse Mucha's 'Les Arts' series 1898. Stamped JM and with the model number 4495 to the reverse. In excellent condition with just one small nick to the paint surface of the dress. Dimensions 59 cm x 39.5 cm. A rare and beautiful bas-relief plaque that exemplifies Art Nouveau's emphasis on the marriage of the fine and decorative arts as well as Alphonse Mucha's monumental impact on the movement. The design is from Mucha's 'Danse' decorative panel from his 'Les Arts' series commissioned and printed by the Parisian printer Champenois. Mucha and Champenois embarked upon a successful partnership in 1896 producing theatre posters and advertisements for companies such as Moët and Chandon and Job cigarettes. Mucha's designs were so popular with the public that Champenois asked him to produce purely decorative posters without text for sale to collectors a new concept at the time. This prompted Mucha to develop his decorative panel series the first of which depicted the seasons personified as beautiful women. Later series were based on precious stones the moon and stars and times of day. Mucha's Chapenois panels present an intriguing distillation of Art Nouveau values reproducing incredibly skilfully executed and visually rich designs whilst also utilising industrial production methods embracing the practical nature of the decorative arts and rendering art available to a wide audience. Of the panels Mucha wrote "I was happy to be involved in an art for the people and not for private drawing rooms. It was inexpensive accessible to the general public and it found a home in poor families as well as in more affluent circles" Mucha Foundation. The work of Johann Maresch and his ceramic studio heavily influenced by Art Nouveau straddled a similar convergence of concepts creating both practical and purely decorative objects that were durable accessible and reflected commercially popular designs but always centred beauty and artistic merit. Johann Maresch produced ceramics of all kinds from fishbowls to figurines but Art Nouveau sensibilities surface particularly strongly in their vases many of which were designed by August Otto and relief plaques. Bas-relief was a common component of the Art Nouveau style utilised in architecture sculpture and interior and applied design to build the highly decorative opulent and naturalistic appearance for which the movement was known. This Johann Maresch production of 'Danse' creates an interesting extension of the Champenois panels and the idea of art as interior decoration. Originally designed for reproduction and for decorative use by a wide range of people the design is here reproduced with a further degree of separation in a material and form with a long history of use in mass-production and the applied arts rooting Mucha's work even further within the world of crafts. Further details and images for any of the items listed are available on request. All items are catalogued by humans. Lucius Books welcomes direct contact with our customers. Bohemia (Czech Republic): Johann Maresch. [c.1898] unknown

Lucius Books · Royaume-Uni4 750,00 £GB≈ 5 652,88 €

MUCHA, Alphonse:Biblio.com

LE PATER

réf. 30454Paris: H. Piazza and Cie. 1899. First edition first printing. First edition first printing. Limited edition. Folio. Contemporary half brown morocco by Paul Affolter with gilt titles and beautiful floral gilt and tinted leather inlay decorations to the spine the marbled boards ruled in gilt. Top edge gilt. Marbled endpapers. Printed rectos only. Upper and lower wrappers retained and bound in at the front and rear. Half title. Lavishly illustrated by Alphonse Mucha throughout in colour gilt and black and white. A very good or better copy the binding square and firm with some rubbing at the corners spine tips and hinges with a few light abrasions to the upper and lower boards the gilt bright and fresh. The contents with a discrete heraldic book label to the front pastedown some spotting to the early and late pages and to the margins are otherwise clean throughout. An excellent example of a scarce spectacular Mucha publication. Issued in an edition of 400 copies on laid paper from which this example is numbered 247. There was also an edition of 110 copies on Japanese paper. Published in December 1899 Le Pater is among the most visually and intellectually ambitious works of Alphonse Mucha the defining artist of the Art Nouveau movement. Conceived as a spiritual manifesto for the dawning twentieth century it marked a decisive departure from the commercial commissions that had brought Mucha international fame but in his own words little "true satisfaction". Having achieved immense success designing posters and advertisements for clients such as JOB cigarette papers and Moët & Chandon Mucha sought a project of greater artistic philosophical and spiritual significance one that would as he hoped "shine a light" into humanity's darkest corners. He found that inspiration in the Lord's Prayer bringing to it not only his Catholic upbringing but also his deep interest in spiritualism and Freemasonry. Mucha regarded Le Pater as one of his greatest achievements describing it as "the thing I have put my soul into". Charles Masson the influential critic reviewed Mucha's book in 'Art et Decoration' as "an opus of remarkable unity of ideas and execution". The volume presents a graphic and literary allegorical interpretation of the prayer that consists of seven sections each of which contains three pages: a heavily decorated title page that gives a line of The Lord's Prayer in Latin and French; a longer narrative interpretation in French of the line decorated in the style of an illuminated manuscript; finally a black and white illustration provides a visual expression of Mucha's interpretation. The title and narrative pages are printed in colour with gilt accents and are rich with Christian Masonic floral and folkloric symbolism. They are executed in Mucha's instantly recognisable primarily flat style that utilises thick outlines and intricate detail commonly seen in his poster designs. The black and white illustrations in contrast employ a soft-edged painterly technique and create a strong sense of depth and dimension through a dramatic use of light and shadow. The wide array of techniques displayed in one volume beautifully exemplify Mucha's impressive breadth of skill as both a graphic and a fine artist the latter being an aspect of his oeuvre that has perhaps been neglected by history. Mucha's interpretation of the Lord's Prayer is both unconventional and profoundly imaginative. Humanity appears as a vast multitude traversing surreal mountainous landscapes beneath immense luminous manifestations of the divine figures that are frequently female or androgynous in form. In the illustration accompanying "Give us this day our daily bread" a colossal figure with three breasts pours forth rivers of milk while a smaller floating figure bears a radiant heart symbolising the physical and spiritual nourishment upon which humanity depends. In the meditation on "Thy kingdom come" the assembled multitude advances in reverence toward a radiant figure marked by a glowing heart upon its chest expressing Mucha's conviction that love the central pillar of human existence is itself the embodiment of God's kingdom. This fusion of mystical imagery philosophical reflection and visual symbolism invites comparison with the visionary imagination of William Blake whose works likewise sought to unite poetry art and spiritual revelation into a single transformative whole. Further details and images for any of the items listed are available on request. All items are catalogued by humans. Lucius Books welcomes direct contact with our customers. Paris: H. Piazza and Cie. 1899 hardcover

Lucius Books · Royaume-Uni13 500,00 £GB≈ 16 066,07 €

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