Dec 19, 2007 - Sale 2133

Sale 2133 - Lot 89

Unsold
Estimate: $ 4,000 - $ 6,000
LEOPOLDO METLICOVITZ (1868-1944) LIEBIG. 1899.
58 1/2 x 39 inches. G. Ricordi S.C. Milan.
Condition B+: repaired tears and minor restoration in image.
Born in Trieste, Metlicovitz came to Milan and began working for the Ricordi publishing house, where he learned about poster design under the tutelage of Adolfo Hohenstien. As with many of Hohenstein's pupils he soon became one of the preeminent Italian graphic designers of his era. Throughout his career he produced numerous posters for commercial advertising, exhibitions, operas and the movie industry. Part of his oeuvre consisted of classical allegories, in several prominent examples of which he featured statuesque men (see Swann Art nouveau Auction #2002, lot 62). Here, to promote a beef extract, he depicts a man, literally grabbing a bull by the horns, and halting him in his tracks. The graphic treatment is as bold as the image, with the flat blue sky and the flat red color used to delineate the bull, offset by the detail of the man himself. Riccordi 155.