Orléans, south of Paris. A high price for such poster which was in good condition. Mucha's prints are certainly among of the most expensive with those of Toulouse-Lautrec on the market. This Czech-born artist who worked as a decorator, painter, draughtsman, engraver and photographer left his native country for Munich and then settled in Paris where he started his career as an illustrator. He met success with theatre and advertising posters notably with that ordered by the Theatre de la Renaissance in 1894 for «Gismonda», a play in which Sarah Bernhardt appeared. The famous actress showed so much enthusiasm that she took the artist under contract for six years. Many posters show Sarah standing upright in a somewhat hieratic posture.
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