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With his instantly recognizable decorative style, Czech artist and Art Nouveau master Alphonse Mucha (1860–1939) defined the look of the fin-de-siècle. In evocative shades of peach, gold, ochre, and olive, his seductive compositions of patterns, flowers, and beautiful women became paradigms of the Belle Époque years.Mucha’s work permeated illustration, posters, postcards, and the advertising designs of his day. His striking posters of star actress Sarah Bernhardt were particularly famous. Alongside this delicate decorative work, Mucha also harbored strongly felt political ideas. With his monumental cycle The Slav Epic, he expressed his staunch support for Pan-Slavism, promoting the political independence of the Czech and Slavic nations from the Austro-Hungarian Empire.Compiled in association with the Mucha Foundation, this book presents key works and introduces the full reach of Mucha’s œuvre from patterned decoration to his book illustrations, posters, photographs and monumental paintings.

A fabulous tribute to the artist whose stylized poster designs defined Art Nouveau's visual language, and whose influence can be seen everywhere from manga to the Grateful DeadPublished with D.A.P..This volume reappraises the graphic work of Alphonse Mucha (1860–1939) and explores its influence on graphic art since the 1960s. Published in conjunction with a touring exhibition to five leading museums in the US and Mexico, this volume provides an opportunity to survey the development of Mucha’s style, which evolved to be synonymous with Art Nouveau. It explores how it was rediscovered by later generations of artists, becoming a new artistic idiom for the Psychedelic Art of the 1960s and 1970s as well as a wide range of visual culture from the late 20th century to today, exemplified by American comics, Japanese manga and street murals.Coinciding with the opening of the new Mucha Museum in the baroque Savarin Palace in Prague, Timeless Mucha is organized into three thematic sections: Inspirations for the Mucha Style, Le Style Mucha, and Art Nouveau and The Rebirth of the Mucha Style and Its Legacy. The first two sections focus on Mucha’s artistic development, examining the theoretical basis of Mucha’s style—famously known as "le style Mucha" in fin-de-siècle Paris—and its context. Tracing the artist's footsteps from his youth in Moravia through the 1890s, when he attained fame as a poster artist, the first section highlights a selection of works of art, crafts and books from his own collection. The third section explores visual links between Mucha’s artistic idiom and the styles developed by later generations of artists. While Mucha's style continues to influence today's visual culture, including fashion, animation movies and computer games, this catalog also focuses on a philosophical aspect of Mucha's legacy: the art of message-making.

With his instantly recognizable decorative style, Czech artist and Art Nouveau master Alphonse Mucha (1860–1939) defined the look of the fin-de-siècle. In evocative shades of peach, gold, ochre, and olive, his seductive compositions of patterns, flowers, and beautiful women became paradigms of the Belle Époque years.Mucha’s work permeated illustration, posters, postcards, and the advertising designs of his day. His striking posters of star actress Sarah Bernhardt were particularly famous. Alongside this delicate decorative work, Mucha also harbored strongly felt political ideas. With his monumental cycle The Slav Epic, he expressed his staunch support for Pan-Slavism, promoting the political independence of the Czech and Slavic nations from the Austro-Hungarian Empire.Compiled in association with the Mucha Foundation, this book presents key works and introduces the full reach of Mucha’s œuvre from patterned decoration to his book illustrations, posters, photographs and monumental paintings.

“The mission of art is to express each nation’s aesthetic values in accordance with the beauty of its soul. The mission of the artist is to teach people to love that beauty.” —Alphonse Mucha   Alphonse Mucha was an extraordinarily prolific and versatile artist who made his mark in the diverse fields of design—including posters, jewelery, interior decoration, theater, and packaging and product designs— as well as in painting, book illustration, sculpture, and photography. He is one of the best-known Czech artists to wide international audiences today and rose to fame in fin-de-siècle Paris with his elegant designs for theater posters for Sarah Bernhardt, the most famous French actress of the time, and decorative panels (panneaux décoratifs) featuring gracefully posed women. For those posters, Mucha created a distinctive style—“le style Mucha”—characterized by harmonious compositions, sinuous forms, organic lines, and a muted palette, which became synony- mous with the newly emerging decorative style of the time—Art Nouveau. By the time of the Paris Exposition Universelle of 1900, Mucha had become a leading figure in this decorative-art movement, and he defined the look of the era.   The catalog explores the development of Mucha’s career and overall achievements as a multifaceted and visionary artist. It is divided into six sections highlighting Mucha’s personality as a Bohemian; a picture maker for people; a cosmopolitan; a mystic; a patriot; and a philosopher.

This book dedicated to Alphonse Mucha celebrates the genius of the Art Nouveau master through a rich narrative journey that explores both his artistic production and his aesthetic vision. It presents Mucha as an innovator of visual language and the creator of an iconic feminine imagery that has transcended eras and cultures. Particular attention is given to a selection of works from different periods, illustrating the continuity of the ideal of beauty from the Classical and Renaissance traditions to the modern age. Through images, insights, and contextual analysis, the volume traces the evolution of this enduring aesthetic concept and its reinterpretation in Mucha’s work. The book offers an immersive reading experience, enriched by visual materials and thematic sections that evoke the atmosphere of Mucha’s time while highlighting the innovative power of his artistic language. A journey through art, myth, and visual communication, this volume reveals the lasting relevance and contemporary resonance of Mucha’s imagination, reaffirming his place as one of the most influential artists of modernity.