The auction features masterpieces and rarities from a century of poster design. The collection includes Art Nouveau, Art Deco, Modern, and Contemporary lithographs and maquettes that are ideally suited to a variety of interests and tastes.
NEW YORK, N.Y. –– The 85th Rare Posters Auction from Poster Auctions International on Sunday, November 14, features masterpieces and rarities from a century of poster design. The collection includes Art Nouveau, Art Deco, Modern, and Contemporary lithographs and maquettes that are ideally suited to a variety of interests and tastes.
All 490 lots will be on view to the public October 29 through November 13. The auction will be held live in PAI’s gallery at 26 West 17th Street in New York City, as well as online at posterauctions.com, beginning promptly at 11am Eastern time.
Jack Rennert, president of Poster Auctions International, Inc., said, “This auction is notable for its inclusion of beloved works as well as rarely seen images that have not been at auction in many years. We’re delighted with the selections available from top artists such as Cappiello, Cassandre, Colin, Mauzan, Mucha, Schnackenberg, and Toulouse-Lautrec.”
The sale will kick off with 22 winter images. Highlights include Burkhard Mangold’s 1914 Winter in Davos (est. $12,000-$15,000), Emil Cardinaux’s 1920 Palace Hotel / St. Moritz (est. $10,000-$12,000), and Alex W. Diggelmann’s 1937 Gstaad / Berner Oberland (est. $3,000-$4,000).
For collectors of transit posters, over 80 designs for bicycles, aviation, and automobiles will be at auction. Notable cycling images include the anonymous circa 1895 Cycles Gladiator (est. $30,000-$40,000), H. Gray’s 1899 Cycles Sirius (est. $4,000-$5,000), and Ferdinand Lunel’s circa 1894 Rouxel & Dubois (est. $4,000-$5,000). Aviation buffs will delight in M. de Linière’s 1908 Ligue Nationale Aérienne (est. $4,000-$5,000), Ernest Montaut’s 1909 Première Exposition Locomotion Aérienne / Grand Palais (est. $8,000-$10,000), and a variety of images for contemporary airlines.
For collectors of automobile posters, highlights include Roger Perot’s 1933 Grand Prix de Nice (est. $5,000-$6,000), Vic’s 1930 Shell Oil & Petrol / For Quick Starting (est. $3,000-$4,000), and Plinio Codognato’s ultra-rare 1923 Gran Premio d’Europa / Fiat (est. $70,000-$90,000).
Twenty-seven works will be available from Leonetto Cappiello, known as the “father of modern advertising.” His innovative approach employed unusual imagery to create brand recognition, and this ingenuity is palpable in images such as his 1907 Triple-Sec Fournier (est. $4,000-$5,000); the 1919 Naol, which has never been seen at auction before (est. $4,000-$5,000); the 1926 Automoto / Byrrh (est. $7,000-$9,000); the circa 1930 L’Oie d’Or (est. $3,500-$4,000); his 1931 Kub (est. $50,000-$60,000); and the 1933 Le Petit Dauphinois (est. $25,000-$30,000).
Further outstanding works by Cappiello include his 1902 Champagne de Rochegré (est. $8,000-$10,000), the only known copy of his four-sheet 1911 Pygmalion / Winter Fur Sale (est. $10,000-$12,000), and an original 1911 maquette, Carnaval / Vinho do Porto (est. $30,000-$40,000).
From another master of the era, A. M. Cassandre, six important works will be up at auction, including the 1935 Normandie (est. $10,000-$12,000), the 1928 Londen (est. $8,000-$10,000), and the 1927 Étoile du Nord (est. $17,000-$20,000). An original 1935 maquette, titled Angleterre, will also be available (est. $12,000-$15,000).
This auction will also feature 18 works by Luciano Achille Mauzan, whose wry sense of humor was instrumental to his memorable designs. Two important posters that established his career will be available, both for Credito Italiano, from 1917 (each est. $4,000-$5,000 and $2,000-$2,500). Further works include his 1922 Bonomelli / Vermouth Bianco (est. $4,000-$5,000), the 1930 Bertozzi (est. $3,000-$4,000), the 1929 Crosley (est. $7,000-$8,000), and the 1930 Cafiaspirina / Saca el dolor (est. $3,000-$4,000).
Further Art Deco highlights include Paul Colin’s 1932 maquette, Ces Messieurs Dames (est. $10,000-$12,000), Gert Sellheim’s 1936 Australia / Surf Club (est. $7,000-$9,000), Roger Broders’ circa 1930 Monte-Carlo (est. $10,000-$12,000), Marcelo Nizzoli’s 1926 “Campari” / l’aperitivo (est. $5,000-$6,000), and Adolph Treidler’s 1927 New York Central / The Wonder City (est. $3,000-$4,000). Treidler’s maquette for this poster will also be at auction (est. $2,000-$2,500).
From the Art Nouveau era, dozens of impressive lithographs will be on offer. From Alphonse Mucha—the great purveyor of Belle Époque beauty—30 posters and decorative panels will be at auction. These include his 1896 La Dame aux Camelias (est. $17,000-$20,000), the 1902 Cycles Perfecta (est. $20,000-$25,000), the 1896 Job (est. $25,000-$30,000), the rare proof before letters of his 1896 Salon des Cent / XXme Exposition (est. $30,000-$40,000), the 1896 Seasons (est. $30,000-$40,000), the 1897 Bières de la Meuse (est. $20,000-$25,000), the 1897 Monaco-Monte-Carlo (est. $17,000-$20,000), and the 1898 Reverie, printed on silk (est. $20,000-$25,000).
A contemporary of Mucha, Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec depicted a different kind of intoxication: the seedy underbelly, debauchery, and seduction of Parisian nightlife. This auction features 22 of his rarest posters and prints. Important images include his 1896 Troupe de Mlle Églantine (est. $25,000-$30,000); the 1894 Confetti (est. $40,000-$50,000); the 1894 La Loge au Mascaron Doré, hand-signed and dedicated with the Kleinmann blind stamp (est. $35,000-$40,000); the 1899 Jane Avril, from an edition of 25 copies, hand-signed, and with the snake remarque (est. $100,000-$120,000); and both the poster and preliminary drawing for Miss Ida Heath, from 1894 (each est. $14,000-$17,000 and $15,000-$20,000).
Further seminal Art Nouveau works will be offered, including the anonymous 1896 Sutro Baths (est. $8,000-$10,000), F. Hugo d’Alesi’s 1894 maquette for Centenaire de la Lithographie / Galerie Rapp (est. $30,000-$40,000), a 1900 pastel painting by Jules Chéret titled Danse avec Pierrot (est. $30,000-$40,000), Marcello Dudovich’s 1911 Marca Zenit / G. B. Borsalino (est. $17,000-$20,000), Adolfo Hohenstein’s 1898 A. Calderoni (est. $3,000-$4,000), Ludwig Hohlwein’s 1914 Kitty Starling (est. $4,000-$5,000), Privat Livemont’s 1896 Absinthe Robette (est. $10,000-$12,000), Manuel Orazi’s 1900 La Maison Moderne (est. $70,000-$80,000), Maxfield Parrish’s 1896 Poster Show / Pennsylvania Academy (est. $17,000-$20,000), Walter Schnackenberg’s 1912 Odeon Casino (est. $25,000-$30,000), and Théophile-Alexandre Steinlen’s 1905 Clinique Chéron (est. $17,000-$20,000).
Public viewings will be held daily from October 29 through November 13. For more information and to order the catalogue, visit www.posterauctions.com. You may call the gallery at (212) 787-4000. For general inquiries, the email address is [email protected].