Image 3 of 11
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E454 - Various Rich Breiman- i16862
Jardin de Paris, created by Jules Cheret
VOICE NOTE TRANSCRIPT:
His style featured women, known as “cherettes,” at the center of dynamic compositions, framed by bold typography and glowing colors.
He was also known for using bright and glowing colors, something never seen before in color prints at that time. When taken together, his compositions are quite striking.
Image 5 of 11
| e454 | i15052 | 8000x10826px
E454 - Various Rich Breiman- i16864
Pall Mall Budget, created by Maurice Greiffenhagen.
VOICE NOTE TRANSCRIPT:
Pall Mall Budget, by Maurice Greiffenhagen, features dynamic and lively typography in homage to Cheret’s style.
His blocky and bold letters catch the viewer’s attention.
Greiffenhagen also features his own version of the cherette, and uses her figure to help frame out the composition, playing heavily into the concepts of negative and positive space.
Image 10 of 11
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E454 - French Posters - i22702
Trianon- Concert created by George Meunier.
Meunier was heavily influenced by Cheret as he worked at the Imprimiere Chaix. He eventually succeeded Cheret as the principle director but chose to pursue book illustration.
Image 11 of 11
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E454 - French Posters - i22703
Le Courrier Francais by Jules Cheret
VOICE NOTE TRANSCRIPT:
Cheret was awarded the Legion of Honor by the French government in 1890 for his contributions to the arts. He designed over a thousand posters for different venues and performances. Cheret passed away at the age of 96 in 1932, having retired to the French Riviera in Nice, France.
His works are known throughout the world for portraying the gaiety of the time period and having influenced a new generation of artists, as well as being an influential individual during the Belle Epoque era.
His style featured women, known as “cherettes,” at the center of dynamic compositions, framed by bold typography and glowing colors.
He was also known for using bright and glowing colors, something never seen before in color prints at that time. When taken together, his compositions are quite striking.
Pall Mall Budget, created by Maurice Greiffenhagen.
VOICE NOTE TRANSCRIPT:
Pall Mall Budget, by Maurice Greiffenhagen, features dynamic and lively typography in homage to Cheret’s style.
His blocky and bold letters catch the viewer’s attention.
Greiffenhagen also features his own version of the cherette, and uses her figure to help frame out the composition, playing heavily into the concepts of negative and positive space.
Meunier was heavily influenced by Cheret as he worked at the Imprimiere Chaix. He eventually succeeded Cheret as the principle director but chose to pursue book illustration.
Cheret was awarded the Legion of Honor by the French government in 1890 for his contributions to the arts. He designed over a thousand posters for different venues and performances. Cheret passed away at the age of 96 in 1932, having retired to the French Riviera in Nice, France.
His works are known throughout the world for portraying the gaiety of the time period and having influenced a new generation of artists, as well as being an influential individual during the Belle Epoque era.
"Les Maitres de l'Affiche" refers to the series of 256 prints created by Cheret at his Paris print shop "Imprimere Chaix." This is plate 234 in the collection.
Notice how this woman is portrayed. She is bold and elegant, representing the stereotypical "Cherette" image.
Dots count
4
Dot stories
1
Gabrielle Ly
(@gabrielle_ly)
Jan 17 2024
0.21
0.26
Cirage Jacquot & Cie means Jaquot and Cie shoe polish.
2
Gabrielle Ly
(@gabrielle_ly)
Jan 22 2024
0.17
1.16
Societe generale des cirages francais means general society of french shoe polish.
3
Gabrielle Ly
(@gabrielle_ly)
Jan 23 2024
0.61
0.45
Black shoe polish is used here as face paint for a clown.
4
Gabrielle Ly
(@gabrielle_ly)
Jan 23 2024
0.08
1.28
This is plate 90 in the collection.
Dots count
3
Dot stories
1
Gabrielle Ly
(@gabrielle_ly)
Jan 22 2024
0.22
1.14
Les Mardis Mercredis Vendredis & Samedis means Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Fridays, and Saturday.
2
Gabrielle Ly
(@gabrielle_ly)
Jan 22 2024
0.24
0.31
Jardin de Paris means "Garden of Paris."
3
Gabrielle Ly
(@gabrielle_ly)
Jan 23 2024
0.07
1.28
This is plate 65 in the collection.
Dots count
3
Dot stories
1
Gabrielle Ly
(@gabrielle_ly)
Jan 22 2024
0.06
1.28
This is plate 17 in a collection of 256 prints.
VOICE NOTE TRANSCRIPT:
Each of these images in this exhibit feature a unique plate number from Cheret’s collection of 250. Cheret not only published his own designs but those of other artists.
2
Gabrielle Ly
(@gabrielle_ly)
Jan 22 2024
0.16
0.8
Palais de Glace means Ice Palace. This was one of the most popular attractions in Belle Epoque Paris. Now the Théâtre du Rond-Point, the space has been used as a theatre since 1981.
3
Gabrielle Ly
(@gabrielle_ly)
Jan 22 2024
0.35
0.24
The woman takes the center of the poster, drawing a diagonal line across between the text.
Dots count
1
Dot stories
1
Gabrielle Ly
(@gabrielle_ly)
Jan 23 2024
0.06
1.26
This is plate 24 in the collection.
Dots count
2
Dot stories
1
Gabrielle Ly
(@gabrielle_ly)
Jan 23 2024
0.47
1.06
Instituto Cartografico Italiano Roma means Italian Cartographic Institute, Rome.
Salon des 100 or the Salon of the 100 was a commercial art exhibition, based at 31 Rue Bonaparte.
2
Gabrielle Ly
(@gabrielle_ly)
Jan 22 2024
0.42
0.52
The Salon des 100 sold prints, paintings, and other works of art to the public at reasonable prices.
3
Gabrielle Ly
(@gabrielle_ly)
Jan 23 2024
0.05
1.31
This is plate 15 in the collection.
Dots count
2
Dot stories
1
Gabrielle Ly
(@gabrielle_ly)
Mar 29 2024
0.21
0.48
Notice the Eiffel Tower in the distance.
2
Gabrielle Ly
(@gabrielle_ly)
Mar 29 2024
0.65
0.24
This poster featured here is one of Jules Cheret's works, entitled "Madame Sans-Gene."
Dots count
1
Dot stories
1
Gabrielle Ly
(@gabrielle_ly)
Mar 29 2024
0.44
0.56
The styling of these central figures draws similarities to Cheret's own "cherettes" with their dynamic positions, confident features, and bold colors.
Dots count
3
Dot stories
1
Gabrielle Ly
(@gabrielle_ly)
Mar 02 2024
0.35
0.34
Le Courrier Francais was illustrated weekly founded and edited by Jules Roques. Known for its satire and sarcasm, it ran from 1884 till 1914. The paper often featured and provoked the public with their prints (by artists such as Cheret himself).
2
Gabrielle Ly
(@gabrielle_ly)
Mar 02 2024
0.39
0.61
The Courrier Francais was known for holding masked balls and their daring prints encouraged female participants to dress lightly.
3
Gabrielle Ly
(@gabrielle_ly)
Mar 02 2024
0.27
0.37
Notice the wash of color in the background, reminiscent of France's flag.
1
2
3
4
5
1
2
3
4
1
2
3
1
2
3
1
1
2
1
2
1
2
3
1
2
1
1
2
3
Exhibit ID:454
0
0
29
11
6
French Posters / Jules Cheret - Rich Breiman Collection - Curated by Gabrielle Ly
Exhibit Stories:
French Posters / Jules Cheret - Rich Breiman Collection - Curated by Gabrielle Ly
April 2024 - Born in 1836 to a family of artisans, Jules Cheret is known today as the father of modern lithography. His artistic influence began at an early age: his father was a typographer. Due to his family’s poverty, Cheret was apprenticed to a lithographer at the age of 13. He eventually invented color lithography as it exists today, transforming dull prints into veritable rainbows of color.
Surprisingly, Cheret’s only formal art training was a single course at the Ecole Nationale de Dessin in Paris. He eventually moved to London, England to study photography and design from 1859 to 1866. His experience and exposure to further lithography techniques inspired him to establish his lithography firm in Paris in 1866. Eugene Rimmel, a perfume manufacturer, funded Cheret’s firm after hiring him to create packaging. Cheret imported the lithography machines from London as they did not exist in France yet.
Cheret created his first poster in 1858, commissioned for the operetta Orpheus in the Underworld in London. At first, his posters only used three colors, made from three overlapping prints in the lithographic process. (He also influenced artists such as Henri de Toulous-Lautrec who used the same process of color lithography.)
The artist was awarded the Legion of Honor by the French government in 1890 for his contributions to the arts. He designed over a thousand posters for different venues and performances. Cheret passed away at the age of 96 in 1932, having retired to the French Riviera in Nice, France.
The term “Cherettes” was coined to describe how Cheret portrayed women in his posters. In contradiction to his time, he depicted women not as puritans or prostitutes but as lively and elegant, free and bold individuals. They appeared as individuals with their own lives and desires, making some call Cheret a pioneer in female liberation.
Over time, his style evolved. With “Cherettes” taking the center focus, his compositions became more dynamic and typography-heavy. His posters, influenced by Rococo painters and Japanese woodblock prints, featured simplified backgrounds, flanked by glowing colors and textures. His work elevated lithography to an art form and became popular as it portrayed the gaiety of the time.
VOICE NOTE TRANSCRIPT:
Jules Cheret, 1836 to 1932, was the pioneer of color lithography and invented a new way of printing color. He started his artistic journey at 13 as an apprentice to a lithographer. Surprisingly, he barely had any formal art training, having taken only one formal course at the Ecole Nationale de Dessin in Paris. He moved to London to study photography and design from 1859 to 1866, later moving back to Paris to open his own firm. His firm was originally funded by a perfume manufacturer who loved Cheret’s design. Cheret imported his lithography machines from London as they did not exist in France at the time. He was known for his poster designs and prints, often printing his and other artists’ works at his print shop Imprimere Chaix in Paris during the Belle Epoque era. This generation of artists ushered in a more colorful period in printed works. He released a collection of 250 prints called the Les Maitres de l'Affiche.
