From calendars to museums, tote bags to money, Alphonse Mucha’s artwork has had a huge impact on people all around the world. His stylized posters are some of the most well known, and are featured almost everywhere you turn. His master lithography has inspired countless people, and even got his technique coined as “Le Style Mucha.” However, his story extends beyond his meticulously crafted posters.
Alphonse Mucha was born in 1860, in the town of Ivancice, Moravia. Even in his childhood, Mucha’s artistic talent was clear to those around him. He started drawing from a very early age, but despite his skill, he was not accepted into the Prague Academy of Fine Arts. Rather than let his rejection discourage him, Mucha worked even harder, trying a few different jobs before becoming a professional artist. As a young adult, Mucha moved from his home state of Czechoslovakia to Paris, where he received an education sponsored by the Count Khuen-Belasi because of how impressed the count was with Mucha’s murals. After many years of living in France, the count suddenly withdrew his support, and Mucha was left to make a living on his own in a foreign country. He left school, and began to make a living as an illustrator. His work was featured in many Czech and French magazines and publications, but it wasn’t until 1894 that Mucha’s real break came.
On December 26th, 1894, Alphonse Mucha was hired to design his first poster promoting a play starring a famous French actress, Sarah Bernhardt. The poster, called Gismonda, was extremely successful and kickstarted his career, leading to Mucha signing a six-year contract with the performer. In 1896, Mucha created his first decorative panel, and in 1897, he opened his first solo exhibition at the Bodinière Gallery in Paris, featuring 107 different pieces of artwork. While in Paris, Mucha also worked on jewelry, and collaborated with Georges Fouqet, a well known French designer, to explore new aesthetics and designs. A few years later, Mucha met his wife, Maruska Chytilová, in Paris and in 1906 Mucha left for America, where he spent some time commissioning art there. However, he returned to Europe in 1910 and was chosen to design the banknotes and postage stamps for the newly formed Czechoslovakian state. When Nazis invaded Czechoslovakia in 1939, Alphonse Mucha was among one of the first people arrested by the Gestapo and brought in for questioning. Although he was allowed to return home, the invasion had taken a serious toll on his health and spirit, and Mucha died a short while later due to pneumonia. The Nazis gave an order that only Mucha’s immediate friends and family could attend his funeral. However, over a hundred thousand citizens showed up to his funeral to pay their respects to his life and legacy.
I was fortunate enough to learn about this talented artist in the Mucha Museum in Prague. Across all walls of the museum were beautiful panels filled with Mucha’s artwork, along with informative plaques detailing the history of each one. In the back of the museum was a video on the life of Alphonse Mucha and examples of the money that he designed. After exiting the museum, I decided to visit the gift shop, which featured jewelry, bags, tea boxes, art prints and more, all showing off the artwork of Alphonse Mucha. For the rest of my time in Europe, I felt myself plagued by the legacy of the legendary artist. In the Czech Republic, I would constantly see people out and about on the street wearing clothing and accessories that showed off his pieces of art. In Paris, street merchants sold tiny little pins and postcards of the same art I had seen in the Mucha Museum in Prague. Although none of the vendors or cornershops I saw provided the name of the artist responsible for the iconic images, his work was always easy to spot due to its unique nature. In fact, Alphonse Mucha was featured in some shape and form on nearly every street.
That extremely recognizable art style is a staple of Mucha’s, and is very popular, especially today. Although some people use the term “Le Style Mucha,” it is more widely known as “Art Nouveau.” The style got popularized throughout America and Europe from 1890-1910, in a large part, thanks to Alphonse Mucha, and other artists such as Scottish architect Charles Rennie Macintosh, American glassmaker Louis Comfort Tiffany, and many more. The style is characterized by asymmetrical pictures, and long flowing lines that often draw inspiration from nature, particularly plants. Art Nouveau can be featured in architecture, sculptures, jewelry, and drawings, which is the art form that Alphonse Mucha most often used. However, after 1910, many people unfortunately lost interest in Art Nouveau. It was considered old fashioned and out of style compared to newer art trends across Europe. Yet, many years later, in the 1960’s, there was a rise in the Art Nouveau style once more, as museums like the Museum of Modern Art in New York and the Victoria & Albert Museum in London featured pieces of artwork in the style of Art Nouveau.
With the revival of the style of Art Nouveau came a rise in popularity of Alphonse Mucha’s work after his death. In the first few years after he pass, Mucha faded into the cultural background. It seemed as though his legacy would be as easily wiped away as a handprint on a glass window. Fortunately, in the 1960s and 70s, society’s appreciation of Mucha’s work was reinvigorated. His art designs were used on album covers alongside other contemporary art, and a lot of his graphic art provided a source of inspiration for the hippie movement. In 1966, his first biography was published, and his work continued to be celebrated by artists and consumers in Paris and Prague, the two cities where he most prominently shared his work. However, his influence extends far beyond those two places and times. If you look closely enough, you can find his work in so many places around the world. Once I was introduced to Alphonse Mucha the artist, I saw his legacy every which way I turned, and I am still finding traces of his genius even now.
A couple of weeks ago, I was in a Paper Source store, a type of shop where aesthetic stationary and other trinkets are sold. When I was in the store, many of the items were Halloween or fall themed, although the first traces of winter were starting to make their appearance in the snowmen and tiny Christmas trees on display. The most interesting thing there for me, was not the many festive themed items to take home, but rather a display filled with miniature books of art prints and black and white images, that the buyer could fill in with watercolor paints. Some of the artists featured that work was being shown was Monet, Degas, and, you guessed it, Alphonse Mucha himself.
For quite some time in his life, Alphonse Mucha dealt with unresponsive audiences and large hurdles. Mucha was rejected from the school he wanted to attend, was abandoned by his sponsor in Paris, and was forced to watch Nazis invade his home and was taken in for questioning. A lesser person might have given up, but not Alphonse Mucha. He persevered through his challenges and created a lasting legacy that is still affecting the lives of people today.
Once I was introduced to Alphonse Mucha the artist, I saw his legacy every which way I turned, and I am still finding traces of his genius even now.