Cappiello, Leonetto. Cafe Martin 1920s Lithograph

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This classic Leonetto Cappiello Cafe Martin medium format poster, created for a coffee brand, features one of Cappiello’s most striking, … Read more This classic Leonetto Cappiello Cafe Martin medium format poster, created for a coffee brand, features one of Cappiello’s most striking, enduring and popular characters. It depicts a man dressed in white, holding a coffee pot proudly in the air. In his other hand he is gripping on to a few boxes of Cafe Martin coffee. He tries to keep hold of them as he is thrust into the air by the steam rising from a beautifully decorated coffee cup. One of Cappiello’s most popular designs, this image was used repeatedly by the company in various formats. At the time, anyone wearing a turban was referred to in the vernacular as a “Turk,” resulting in Café Martin coffee being commonly known as “the Turk in the cup”. The poster also features a caption that reads ‘Eviter les Contrefaçons’ which translates as “Avoid Counterfeits”.

Leonetto Cappiello was an Italian and French poster art designer and painter, who mainly lived and worked in Paris. He is now often called ‘the father of modern advertising’ because of his innovation in poster design.

Leonetto Cappiello was an Italian graphic artist and pioneer of modern advertising. One of the truly great figures in the history of poster art, he is widely considered to be one of the most influential figures in the history of commercial art. Cappiello’s unique style combines elements of satire, caricature, and art nouveau. His striking images were often controversial, but they always managed to capture the public’s attention. Cappiello’s work helped to popularise a number of products, including Perrier water, Campari liqueur, and Fiat automobiles. He also produced a number of iconic posters for the French railways. Today, Cappiello’s work is highly sought-after by collectors, and his posters are considered some of the most valuable in the world.

During the course of his remarkable career as one of the most successful poster designers of the 20th century, Leonetto Cappiello created more than 530 poster lithographs. His work still has a marked influence on graphic designers and poster artists to this day. His original posters are highly sought after and command high prices when they appear at auctions around the world.

Background: Other Leonetto Cappiello posters

Cappiello created his first poster in 1901. It was for the French magazine Le Frou Frou. It was the start of a 40-year career during which he is estimated to have created over 3,000 posters. Today many of his original lithographic prints fetch some incredible prices.

Cappiello’s fabulous 1920 Mistinguett poster by Leonetto Cappiellois a personal favourite. It features the French chanteuse from the vantage point from an opera box with the star looking up towards us. She is dressed in a typically flamboyant white feather dress with long white ribbons billowing around her. She is also wearing a more modest than usual headdress that resembles horns or long ears. A copy of this highly sought-after lithographic print was listed in an online vintage poster auction in 2018. It had a guide price of between $8,000-$10,000. It sold for $15,600.

The impressive Automobiles Charron poster featuring a woman climbing into her chauffeur-driven car on her way to Christmas shopping can command prices in excess of £8,000. At the time of listing (2019) a poster created for Bitter Campari, in 1921, depicting one of Cappiello’s characters appearing from a peeling orange skin was listed for just over £15,000. The 1900 poster advertising Cachou Lajaunie breath mints were also available, with a $4,000 price tag. One of his rare travel posters promoting golf in Font-Romeo in its original form fetches over £13,000 on the rare occasions they come to auction. The famous 1929 stone lithographic print for Parapluie Revel featuring three gentlemen battling the weather with their umbrellas is another that can command a hefty price of over £13,000.

Other Leonetto Cappiello posters such as the 1927 Cognac Monnet poster with a young woman in a red dress drinking from a cup of sunshine is worth around $7,500, whilst a 1921 print for Cordial Campari Milano depicting a Pierrot-type clown drinking from a bottle of the golden beverage commands a price of $15,000. His poster for another alcoholic drink Contratto depicting a woman holding a huge champagne glass overflowing with drink regularly sells for £4,000. Cappiello’s Cognac Albert Robin poster reaches prices of £6,500 whilst the 1903 poster for Mele titled Novita per Signora sells for more than £32,000.

Framing; This has been reframed in an older Z Gallery frame. The Z gallery frame is not the original frame. Frame is in average condition.

Size: Medium format poster, measures 17 x 23 in, framed. The poster may be up to 1/2 inch smaller per side once examined unframed. See less