FRANZ FIEBIGER (1880-1932) AQUILEIA. Circa 1905.
38 3/4x37 inches, 98 1/2x94 cm. K.K. Hof, Vienna.
Condition B+: repaired tears and restored losses at edges; abrasions, restoration and overpainting in margins and image and along vertical and horizontal folds.
Fiebiger, a painter, graphic artist and designer, studied at Vienna's School of Applied Arts under Koloman Moser. He was involved in the Secession, designing books, textiles and posters. He is best known for two images he designed for the Kaiser's Jubilee in 1908, one specifically advertising an exhibition of furniture. For this rare and previously unreferenced poster, Fiebiger's image of the old Roman town, with its basilica tower, is accomplished. However, the artistry here is in the typography and the ornamentation in the four corners, the latter of which is strongly reminiscent of the work of Carl Otto Czeschka, especially as seen on the cover for the Feldermaus Kabaret in 1907. The program was square in shape like this example, which is a very unusual shape for a poster. The Archaeology Museum in Aquileia opened with a ceremony attended by Austrian Archduke Karl Ludwig in 1882.