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Lot 322
La Trappistine. 1897.
Passed
Est.
$25,000 - $30,000
Live Auction
PAI-XCI: Rare Posters
Live Bidding began Nov 12, 2023 at 11:00 AM EST
Description
Artist: ALPHONSE MUCHA (1860-1939)
Size: 29 3/8 x 81 1/8 in./74.6 x 206.2 cm
Condition: A.
Printer: Imp. F. Champenois, Paris
Reference: Rennert/Weill, 30; Lendl/Prague, p. 97; DFP-II, 631; PAI-LXXXIX, 298
Key Words: Art Nouveau; Artist: Mucha; Alcohol

La Trappistine. 1897.
A liqueur made by Parisian Trappist monks requires a bit of reverence: an ideal commission for Mucha, whose first artistic epiphany arrived while he was a young chorister at a Czech cathedral, and had a revelation while gazing at the baroque embellishments. This time, our maiden's divine halo is a labyrinth of concentric circles enclosing Celtic-style crosses. Rather than the wild, sensuous tangles of Job’s leading lady, "the hair is entirely orderly and hangs down in a single thick strand, but that is because it has the function to lead our eyes to the tabouret in the foreground which holds the bottle” (Rennert/Weill, p. 134). This is a two-sheet poster.