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The Times Of The Day  – Les Heures Du Jour –  Alphonse Mucha

Alfons Maria Mucha (1860 –1939), often known in English and French as Alphonse Mucha, was a Czech Art Nouveau painter and decorative artist known best for his distinct style. He produced many paintings, illustrations, advertisements, postcards, and designs.

His style was given international exposure by the 1900 Universal Exhibition in Paris, of which he said, “I think [the Exposition Universelle] made some contribution toward bringing aesthetic values into arts and crafts.” He decorated the Bosnia and Herzegovina Pavilion and collaborated with decorating the Austrian Pavilion. His Art Nouveau style was often imitated. The Art Nouveau style, however, was one that he attempted to disassociate himself from throughout his life; he always insisted that rather than maintaining any fashionable stylistic form, his paintings were entirely a product of himself and Czech art. He declared that art existed only to communicate a spiritual message, and nothing more; hence his frustration at the fame he gained by his commercial art, when he most wanted to concentrate on more artistic projects.

He produced a flurry of paintings, posters, advertisements, and book illustrations, as well as designs for jewelry, carpets, wallpaper, and theatre sets in what was termed initially The Mucha Style but became known as Art Nouveau (French for “new art”). His works frequently featured beautiful young women in flowing, vaguely Neoclassical-looking robes, often surrounded by lush flowers which sometimes formed halos behind their heads. In contrast with contemporary poster makers he used pale pastel colors.

Although it enjoys great popularity today, at the time when he died, his style was considered outdated. His son, author Jiří Mucha, devoted much of his life to writing about him and bringing attention to his artwork. In his own country, the new authorities were not interested in Mucha. The Slav Epic was rolled and stored for twenty-five years before being shown in Moravský Krumlov, and a Mucha museum opened in Prague, managed by his grandson John Mucha.

His work has continued to experience periodic revivals of interest for illustrators and artists. Interest in Mucha’s distinctive style experienced a strong revival during the 1960s (with a general interest in Art Nouveau) and is particularly evident in the psychedelic posters of Hapshash and the Coloured Coat, the collective name for British artists Michael English and Nigel Waymouth, and Bob Masse.

Interesting Notes about the Artist:

Mucha’s work is a strongly acknowledged influence for Stuckist painter Paul Harvey.

The band Soilent Green used a picture by Mucha for the cover art of their album Sewn Mouth Secrets.

Among his many other accomplishments, he was also the restorer of Czech Freemasonry.

One of the largest collections of his works is in the possession of former world no. 1 professional tennis player Ivan Lendl, who started collecting his works upon meeting Jiří Mucha in 1982. His collection was exhibited publicly for the first time in 2013 in Prague.