Alphonse Mucha
| Alphonse Mucha | |
|---|---|
Mucha circa 1906
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| Born |
Alfons Maria Mucha 24 July 1860 Ivančice, Margraviate of Moravia, Austrian Empire (present Czech Republic) |
| Died | 14 July 1939 (aged 78) Prague, Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia |
| Nationality | Czech |
| Education |
Munich Academy of Fine Arts Académie Julian Académie Colarossi |
| Known for | Painting, Illustration, Decorative art |
| Notable work | The Slav Epic (Slovanská epopej) |
| Movement | Art Nouveau |
| Patron(s) | Count Karl Khuen of Mikulov |
Alfons Maria Mucha (Czech: [ˈalfons ˈmuxa]; 24 July 1860 – 14 July 1939), known 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.
Alphonse Maria Mucha was born in the town of Ivančice, Moravia (currently a region of the Czech Republic). In 1871, Mucha became a chorister at the Cathedral of St. Peter and Paul, Brno, where he received his secondary school education. It is there that he had his first revelation, in front of the richness of Baroque art. During the four years of studying there, he formed a friendship with Leoš Janáček who would become the greatest Czech composer of his generation. Although his singing abilities allowed him to continue his education through high school, currently known as Gymnázium Brno, třída Kapitána Jaroše 14, in the Moravian capital of Brno, drawing had been his main hobby since childhood. He worked at decorative painting jobs in Moravia, mostly painting theatrical scenery. In 1879, he relocated to Vienna to work for a major Viennese theatrical design company, while informally augmenting his artistic education. When a fire destroyed his employer's business during 1881 he returned to Moravia, to do freelance decorative and portrait painting. Count Karl Khuen of Mikulov hired Mucha to decorate Hrušovany Emmahof Castle with murals and was impressed enough that he agreed to sponsor Mucha's formal training at the Munich Academy of Fine Arts.
Mucha moved to Paris in 1887, and continued his studies at Académie Julian and Académie Colarossi. In addition to his studies, he worked at producing magazine and advertising illustrations. About Christmas 1894, Mucha happened to go into a print shop where there was a sudden and unexpected need for a new advertising poster for a play featuring Sarah Bernhardt, the most famous actress in Paris, at the Théâtre de la Renaissance on the Boulevard Saint-Martin. Mucha volunteered to produce a lithographed poster within two weeks, and on 1 January 1895, the advertisement for the play Gismonda by Victorien Sardou was posted in the city, where it attracted much attention.
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