Bieres de la Meuse
Bieres de la Meuse
by Alphonse Mucha
Stone Lithograph in Colors, c.1897, Sheet: 60" x 40"
(with French Tax Stamp – Top Middle/Right)
This large format poster portrays a woman with a wreath of poppies, wheat and hops in her hair holding a pint of beer. The poster incorporates two images at the bottom of the poster that are by another artist: an image of the goddess of the river Meuse and a bird’s eye view of the brewery.
In the late 1800s, posters spread across Europe thanks to the development of color lithography. Mucha, a talented designer, capitalized on this new medium. His first poster, Gismonda, was a hit, earning him the title 'Master of Poster Art.' The majority of Mucha's art was produced with Parisian printer F. Champenois from 1896, creating over 100 designs for ads, panels, and calendars.
Rediscover a Parisian Masterpiece… This Mucha Bieres de la Meuse poster has been meticulously restored by a team of expert artisans. Once gracing the streets of Paris in the late 1800s, this iconic piece of art has been given a new life. Now, you can own a piece of history and add a touch of timeless elegance to your home or office.
The French Tax Stamp: In 1881 a law was created that every poster required a tax stamp to indicate that a fee had been paid for the right to post it.
*Not all vintage posters were stamped by tax assessors, and not all were displayed outdoors. The absence of a stamp doesn't mean a poster is fake; it just wasn't stamped. Stamps don't affect a poster's value but some collectors do seek them out as they add to the charm of these rare works.
Mucha was famous for his commercial posters, which had a wide audience, but he also worked in a variety of other media, including furniture, jewelry, and theatrical sets. He mostly worked in Vienna and Paris but was also in Chicago, where he taught at the Art Institute, from 1904 to 1910. There, he introduced his interpretation of the "new art" to a United States audience. The densely patterned posters epitomize the Art Nouveau interest in natural forms, decoration, and a rejection of the anonymity of mechanical production.
