(Ivančice 1860 - 1939 Prague)

Thalia, the muse of the comedy. 1897.

Ink on cardboard.

Signed lower left: Mucha.

62.7 x 16.7 cm.

The authenticity of this work has been confirmed by the Mucha Foundation.

Provenance:
- Collection Henry Bataille, France.
- Collection Yvonne de Bray, France.
- Galerie Lecuyer, Paris.
- Private collection, Germany (acquired at the above gallery, Salon du Dessin, Paris).

Literature: Cf. Rennert/Weill, Alphonse Mucha: the complete posters and panels, 1984, p. 144.

Living in modest circumstances Alphonse Mucha first makes his living with contracts in scenography and later with book illustration. When he meets the famous actress Sarah Bernhard in 1894 and receives an order for a poster for the play "Gismonda ", he has his final breakthrough. He becomes the most famous poster artist of the Belle Époque and his works are the epitome of the French Art Nouveau. The work offered for the auction here is a magnificent example of the modern style and the artist’s immense talent for drawing. This is a beautifully detailed, elaborate and especially rare ink drawing, which has been used for various theatre announcement ads, such as for the play La Dame aux Camélias, in which Sarah Bernhardt personally performs.