?Final Price Realized includes Buyer’s Premium added to Hammer Price
Estimate: $ 3,000 - $ 4,000
MANOLI / GIBSON GIRL. 1911. 27x37 inches. Hollerbaum & Schmidt, Berlin. Condition B: restored losses, overpainting and staining in margins and corners; vertical and horizontal folds. Within ten years of their founding, in 1894, Manoli had won a gold medal at the 1900 Paris Universal Exhibition, and employed over 200 workers. The company was the first to import automated machines from the United States, and was a pioneer in advertising (their agent, Schmidt, being a founding member of the Werkbund). Of all the renowned artists employed by the company, Klinger was the first to work for Manoli, followed by Dryden and Erdt (see lot 15), but it was Bernhard, who worked for them from 1911 until his departure to the United States in 1922, who was by far the most important artistic contributor. Not only did he redesign their logo (putting the M in a circle) but he designed the packaging for most of their products as well, such as Monte Bello, Rumpel Taube, Dandy, Rapier, Dalli and more. The Gibson Girl, a character invented by the American illustrator Charles Danna Gibson, became world famous when brought to life in the theater by the actress Camille Cliffort, and eventually became the incarnation of the liberated woman. A trendy, light cigarette launched in 1907, Bernhard embued the advertisement with all of the sass of the Gibson Girl character, in a bold and daring way that matched product: a sexy girl, in a dominating position, resting her foot on an enlarged cigarette. This image became extremely popular, and was used as a poster, a package design and as advertising stamps. ref: Das Fruhe Plakat<>, vol. 3, Gebr. Mann Berlin, 1980, no. 195, Die Kunst zu Werben<>, Munchen Stadt Museum, Dumont 1996 ,"Manoli World", p. 142-156.
