Alphonse Mucha
(Czech, 1860–1939)
Biography
Alphonse Mucha was a Czech artist known for his unique Art Nouveau illustrations and designs. Mucha’s style transformed the medium of poster design with its vertical orientation, tendril-like lines, and soft pastel colors. “The purpose of my work was never to destroy but always to create, to construct bridges,” he once said. Born on July 24, 1860 in Ivancice, Moravia (present-day Czech Republic), Mucha spent two years studying at the Academy of Art in Munich before moving to Paris in 1887. During his years in France, he shared a studio with Paul Gauguin and practiced occult ceremonies with the famed Swedish playwright August Strindberg. As his career progressed, the artist began receiving large commissions to create decorative panels for private homes. One such work, The Seasons (1896), exemplifies Mucha’s distinctive stylization of the female figure and natural motifs. After securing financial backing for a proposed suite of ambitious paintings he moved to Prague. Now back in his home country, the artist toiled over the The Slav Epic (1910–1928) for more than a decade. After the Nazi invasion of Prague in 1939, Mucha was deemed a reactionary and subsequently interrogated by the Gestapo while seriously ill. He died later that year, on July 14, 1939 at the age of 78. Today, the artist’s works are included in the collections of the Art Institute of Chicago, the Musée d’Orsay in Paris, and The Museum of Modern Art in New York, among others
Most Expensive Artwork Sold at Auction
The abolition of serfdom in Russia (reduced version), 1920
Sold price: 1,472,000 USD
Alphonse Mucha Artworks
Alphonse Mucha
Gismonda / Théâtre de la Renaissance, 1894
Sale Date: November 15, 2020
Auction Closed
.jpg "THE ARTS (POETRY, DANCE, PAINTING AND MUSIC), 1898")
Alphonse Mucha
THE ARTS (POETRY, DANCE, PAINTING AND MUSIC), 1898
Sale Date: September 24, 2020
Auction Closed
Alphonse Mucha
Woman with Bearskin, from Documents Décoratifs, 1901
Sale Date: October 22, 2020
Auction Closed
Alphonse Mucha
Zdenka Cerny: The Greatest Bohemian..., 1913
Sale Date: October 24, 2020
Auction Closed
Alphonse Mucha
Sarah Bernhardt jouant le rôle de Gismonda..., 1900
Sale Date: October 12, 2020
Auction Closed
<br/>the-four-times-of-day-(a-set-of-4).jpg "四つの時の流れ」(4点1組)The Four Times of day (a set..., 1899")
Alphonse Mucha
四つの時の流れ」(4点1組)The Four Times of day (a set..., 1899
Sale Date: September 26, 2020
Auction Closed
<br/>ilsee,-princesse-de-tripoli-(illustrated-book).jpg "トリポリの姫君イルゼ(挿画本)Ilsee, princesse de Tripoli..., 1901")
Alphonse Mucha
トリポリの姫君イルゼ(挿画本)Ilsee, princesse de Tripoli..., 1901
Sale Date: September 26, 2020
Auction Closed
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