ALPHONSE MUCHA (1860-1939) [CALENDAR.] Circa 1897.
22 1/4x8 3/8 inches, 56 1/2x21 1/4 cm.
Condition A-: minor loss in upper right corner; minor repaired tear in lower left corner. Mounted on board. Framed.
Mucha's soft, romantic and winsome imagery was tailor-made to suit calendars, and many of his images were used for just that purpose. The original watercolor upon which this image is based is housed in the North Bohemian Gallery of Fine Art in Litomerice, in the Czech Republic (see Lendl p. 168). The image is a quintessential Mucha composition, featuring a young girl seated within a circle that serves to draw attention to her face. Although the piece is not signed, it is delicately rendered in Mucha's refined style. Several versions with the dates and calendarium filled in have surfaced (bearing the dates 1902 and 1903), but this is only the second time that the blank calendar has come up for auction. rare. Rennert / Weill 42, Lendl p. 169.