Théophile Alexandre Steinlen, Les Otages Civils, 1916

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This artwork titled, Les Otages Civils, 1916 is an original lithograph on Japan paper by Swiss/French artist Theophile Alexandre Steinlen, … Read more This artwork titled, Les Otages Civils, 1916 is an original lithograph on Japan paper by Swiss/French artist Theophile Alexandre Steinlen, 1859-1923. It is signed and numbered out of the edition of 100 in pencil by the artist. The image size is 16 x 21 inches. It was printed by Verneau, Paris, France. It is beautifully framed in a custom silver frame, with gold color bevel.

Born in Lausanne, Switzerland on November 10, 1859, he moved permanently to Paris at age 23 and became a French citizen. Steinlen studied art at Lausanne and later became active as a textile designer in Mulhause. In 1882 he arrived in Paris where he worked as an illustrator for the journals Mirliton, Assiette au Beurre, Chat Noir, and Gil Blas, for which he produced over four hundred lithographs. In the early 1890s, Steinlen's paintings of rural landscapes, flowers, and nudes were being shown at the Salon des Indépendants.

Besides illustrating advertisements for a variety of products, Steinlen was famous for his posters of cabaret and music hall performers . His later work for the journals, like that of Toulouse Lautrec, became increasingly satirical and critical of society. His permanent home, Montmartre and its environs was a favorite subject throughout Steinlen's life and he often painted genre scenes of the working class, capturing day-to-day life in Paris with a simple, endearing style. Between 1914 and 1918 he produced many lithographs depicting the first world war, especially the suffering of the civil population under the Germans occupation. A large collection of his lithographs and etchings are held at the Louvre museum in Paris.

Steinlen's works can be found at many important museums around the world including at the Hermitage Museum in St. Petersburg, Russia and the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C., United States.

Théophile Steinlen died in 1923 in Paris and was laid to rest in the Cimetière Saint-Vincent in Montmartre. See less