Tomoko Sato, with essays by Alison Brown, Paul Greenhalgh & Claire Allerton, Joanna Meacock and Sandra Penketh
Mucha Foundation Publications (December 2015)
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“The aim of art is to glorify beauty.”
Alphonse Mucha
The Mucha Foundation is delighted to announce the publication of a new study on the aesthetic ideas behind Alphonse Mucha's powerful style.
This book, which accompanies a UK travelling exhibition Alphonse Mucha: In Quest of Beauty, draws on the latest research to examine the theoretical aspect of his work, especially the idea of beauty – the core principle of his art. It features Mucha’s iconic posters and other decorative works from his Paris period and also looks at how the artist expressed his Czech nationalism with his artistic language after his return to his native Czech lands.
Reflecting the concept of the exhibition, the book highlights three key themes drawn from Mucha’s art: ‘Women – Icons & Muses’ (Chapter 1); ‘Le Style Mucha – A Visual Language’ (Chapter 2); and ‘Beauty – Power for Inspiration’ (Chapter 3). Whilst the first two chapters explore Mucha’s contribution to Art Nouveau in Paris, the final chapter throws light on his work after his return to the Czech lands. Each chapter makes links between Mucha’s work and philosophy and key works from the four participating Museums – Russell-Cotes Art Gallery & Museum, Bournemouth; Sainsbury Centre for Visual Art, Norwich; Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum, Glasgow; Walker Art Gallery, Liverpool. By creating a parallel display of Mucha and his contemporaries’ works, the book examines to what extent Mucha’s aesthetic and spiritual concerns reflected the spirit of his times.
This beautifully illustrated book includes over 100 works by Mucha as well as works by his contemporaries who shared his aesthetic and spiritual concerns, selected from renowned Aesthetic and Art Nouveau collections in Britain. It features five specialist essays exploring related themes and provides a new perspective on artistic movements at the turn of the 19th century.
“The Mucha Foundation is delighted to present this beautiful book, which highlights inspirational aesthetic links between Mucha and his contemporaries both in Britain and Europe.”
John Mucha, President Mucha Foundation
The exhibition Alphonse Mucha: In Quest of Beauty is currently showing at the Sainsbury Centre for Visual Arts, Norwich (7 November 2015 – 20 March 2016). The exhibition will travel to Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum, Glasgow (Autumn 2016) and Walker Art Gallery, Liverpool (Spring 2017).
Title: Alphonse Mucha: In Quest of Beauty
Author(s): Tomoko Sato, with essays by Alison Brown, Paul Greenhalgh & Claire Allerton, Joanna Meacock and Sandra Penketh
Publication date: 16 December 2016
Extent: 168 pp
Size: 22 x 27cm
Illustrations: 118 colour and 42 b&w illustrations
Binding: softcover with flaps
ISBN 0 953 6322 9
