Gismonda
Alphonse Mucha
Gismonda
lithograph
June 1896
An original Alphonse Mucha lithograph print.
June 1896
Original lithograph printed in colors on wove paper
Signed on the stone lower left Mucha.
A superb impression of the definitive state, from the edition on this paper (there was also a small edition printed on Japan paper). Transcribed from Mucha’s 1894 poster of the same title by artisans at Atelier Chéret and issued as plate 27 (of 256) in the series Le Maîtres de l’Affiche, bearing the blindstamp of the program (Lugt 1777c) in the sheet lower right. Published by Jules Chéret: printed at Impremiere Chaix (Atelier Chéret), Paris.
Catalog: Masters of the Poster pl. 27.
Size Image: 14 1/8 x 5 7/16 inches
Sheet Size: 15 ¾ x 11 ½ inches
Gismonda, Victorien Sardou’s four-act play, was premiered in the autumn of 1894 at the Théâtre de la Renaissance in Paris. Sarah Bernhardt was both director and actor. This poster by Mucha was produced to promote the new production which opened on 4 January, 1895. Mucha portrayed Bernardt as an exotic Byzantine noblewoman wearing a splendid gown and an orchid headdress with a palm branch in her hand. This costume was worn in the last act, the climax of the play, where she joined the Easter procession. Placing her life-size figure on an arched platform, Mucha rendered the beauty and dignity of her personality onstage rather than representing her realistic features or the story. Delighted with Mucha’s design, Bernhardt continued to use this poster for her American tour in 1896.
