Maximilien Luce, A la Scala - Mévisto from Les Maîtres de L'Affiche, 1898, Original Lithograph

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Description

Maximilien luce (1858-1941)

a la scala - mévisto

year of ideation: 1891
year of printing: 1898
lithograph on wove paper
… Read more Maximilien luce (1858-1941)

a la scala - mévisto

year of ideation: 1891
year of printing: 1898
lithograph on wove paper
publisher: chaix

signed in the plate, lower right

from the famous collection "les maîtres de l'affiche"
issue # 35, plate #139, october 1898

bottom left:
les maîtres de l'affiche pl. 139
imprimerie chaix
(encres lorilleux & cie.)

bottom right, blind stamp of publisher / edition

very good condition

literature:
"the complete masters of the poster", edited by stanley appelbaum, dover, new york, 1990, p. 139
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about the collection "les maîtres de l'affiche"

les maîtres de l'affiche (the masters of the poster) is one of the most prestigious and influential art publications in history its 256 color plates have preserved for each succeeding generation a wide-ranging selection of outstanding posters from the turn of the century, when that popular art form had reached its first peak.

the earliest printed posters were chiefly typographic, with relatively few illustrated examples. But in the second half of the nineteenth century, when all types of commercial products, including printed matter, were being aesthetically upgraded, largely thanks to various arts-and-crafts movements, serious artists such as manet began to see new possibilities in the poster medium. It was especially jules chéret (1836-1932) whose unique combination of artistic, technical and entrepreneurial talents was to pave the way for a true poster industry. After chéret opened his own print shop in paris in 1866, his work continued to inspire numerous emulators in europe and america. From 1881 on, his shop operated as a branch of the large chaix firm (imprimerie chaix)

by the 1890s the streets of every great metropolis were enlivened by large, colourful posters.
this chaix publication, les maîtres de l'affiche, was issued as separate numbered sheets measuring 40 x 29 cm. Every month for 60 months, from december 1895 through november 1900, subscribers received a wrapper containing four consecutively numbered poster. On 16 occasions the monthly wrapper also contained a bonus plate, a specially created art lithograph. Jules chéret, artistic director of chaix and father of the modern poster, emerged with the lion's share of the plates, one chéret being included in each monthly issue of four, and seven of the 16 unnumbered bonus plates.

of the 97 artists represented in les maîtres de l'affiche, some were preeminent painters and printmakers at various stages of their careers: toulouse-lautrec, denis, bonnard, vallotton, puvis de chavannes. Others were famous illustrators and cartoonists of the period, still well known to art collectors and bibliophiles. Forain, caran d'ache, ibels, willette, boutet de monvel, léandre. But there were also all those whose names say "poster," the conquering pioneers of the new medium. Chéret himself, mucha, steinlen, the beggarstaffs, grasset, penfield, parrish, bradley, hardy the list could go on and on.
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about the artist

maximilien luce (1858 – 1941) was a french neo-impressionist artist, known for his paintings, graphic art and his anarchist activism. Starting as a wood-engraver, he subsequently concentrated on painting, first as an impressionist, then as a pointillist and finally returning to impressionism.

luce began working in the studio of eugène froment, producing wood-engravings for various publications, including l'illustration and london's the graphic.
the prevalence of the new zincography printing process rendered xylography nearly obsolete as a profession. When the opportunities for employment as an engraver became scarce, luce shifted his focus to painting full-time in about 1883.

gausson and cavallo-péduzzi introduced luce in about 1884 to the divisionist technique developed by georges seurat. This influenced luce to begin painting in the pointillist style. In contrast to seurat's detached manner, luce's paintings were passionate portrayals of contemporary subjects, depicting the "violent effects of light". He moved to montmartre in 1887. Luce joined the société des artistes indépendants and participated in their third spring exhibition, where paul signac purchased one of his pieces, la toilette. Camille pissarro and critic félix fénéon were also impressed by the seven luce works displayed in the show. Fénéon characterized luce as a "coarse, honest man, with a rough and muscular talent." in addition to pissarro and signac, he met many of the other neo-impressionists, including seurat, henri-edmond cross, charles angrand, armand guillaumin, hippolyte petitjean, albert dubois-pillet, and pissarro's son lucien. A new york times critic declared this pointillist period to be the pinnacle of luce's artistic career, singling out the radiant 1895 painting on the bank of the seine at poissy as an example. He described the skillfully executed painting as "a lyrical celebration of nature."

with the exception of the years 1915 to 1919, luce exhibited in every show at les indépendants from 1887 until he died in 1941, including a thirty-year retrospective held in 1926. In 1909, he was elected vice president of the société des artistes indépendants, and was elected president in 1935, following the death of signac, who had held the post since 1908. However, in 1940 he resigned from the position as a protest against the vichy regime's laws which would have prohibited jewish artists from participating in the group.
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important:

. The listing is for the original lithograph.
. The cover of the issue by jules chéret is shown for reference.
this piece has an attribution mark,
i am sure that it is completely authentic and take full responsibility for any authenticity
issues arising from misattribution See less