* World Classic Gallery *

* Alphonse Maria Mucha *

BIOGRAPHY and PAINTINGS Mucha, Alphonse Maria 1860 - 1939

Painter, Printmaker, Czechoslovakia, Art Nouveau
Alphonse Maria Mucha was born in Ivancice, a small provincial town in the Czech Republic.
Mucha started his artistic career as an autodidact. Alfons Mucha had a vocational training in stage decorations in Vienna from 1879 to 1881. In the evening Mucha attended a class in drawing. After a few occasional commissions for decorative paintings Mucha went to Munich in Southern Bavaria.
Here Mucha studied at the Munich Academy of Fine Arts from 1885 to 1887.
After Munich, Mucha moved to the “mecca” of arts, Paris. Here Mucha studied with different teachers. He lived in modest conditions and could survive with small commissions for book and newspaper illustrations. For a short period Mucha shared a studio with Paul Gauguin.
In December 1894 Mucha became famous with a commission for a poster for the actress Sarah Bernard. Sarah Bernard was a very famous actress and celebrity of her time. His poster design for the play Gismonda became a sensation in Paris. Sarah Bernhard was delighted. Mucha received an exclusive contract for six consecutive years by the actress. In the following years, Mucha not only designed all her posters, but her theater decorations and costumes as well. From now on the artist was swamped with commissions for all kind of commercial print advertising.
By this time Mucha had developed his own personal style - characterized by art nouveau elements, tender colors and bycantine decorative elements. And all these elements were ranked around images of fairy like young women with long hair and splendid, refined costumes. In the coming years, this type of female images should become his trademark.
Mucha used lithography as the printing technique for his posters. The posters are usually signed in the block. Some of his posters were produced as sets like The Four Seasons. Complete sets count among the most searched for of Mucha paintings and posters.
In 1890 the artist had his first one man show in Paris with 448 paintings on display. His art work was not confined to the printing media. Mucha designed tissues, stamps and even bank bills. In 1900 Mucha received a commission by the Austrian government to decorate the Austrian pavilion for the World Fair in Paris of 1900. Mucha became also active in designing jewelry.
Between 1904 and 1921 Mucha traveled frequently to the United States. He took commissions in the US and taught art at art academies in New York and Chicago.
In 1939 the German Nazis occupied Czechoslovakia. The popularity of the artist made him a number one target for the Gestapo, the Nazi secret police. Mucha was arrested, interrogated and realeased. Shortly afterwards, Alphonse Maria Mucha died on July 14, 1939 in Prague.
The city of Prague has dedicated an Alphonse Mucha Museum to the artist.


Heraldic Chivalry, Oil on canvas, 35.04 x 53.54 inches [89 x 136 cm]

The Apotheosis of the Slavs, 1926, Oil on canvas

Lefevre-Utile, 1903, Oil on canvas, 20.87 x 28.35 inches [53 x 72 cm]

Portrait Of Milada Cerny, 1906, Oil on canvas, 50 x 35.98 inches [127 x 91.4 cm]

Autumnal, 1896, Panel

Fruit, 1897, Lithograph, 17.48 x 26.06 inches [44.4 x 66.2 cm]

Monaco Monte Carlo, 1897, Lithograph, 29.33 x 42.52 inches [74.5 x 108 cm]

Winter, 1896, Panel