Flirt
Flirt
Flirt

Artist: Alphonse Mucha Czech (1860-1939)

Title: Flirt

Plate: Flirt

Description: Condition A

Original Large version stone colour lithograph, backed on Linen.
Printed by Imp. F. Champenois Paris 1900.
Shipped rolled. 
Certificate of Authenticity.

Reference: Rennert/Weill, 72; Lendl/Paris, 73; Art du Biscuit, p.9

Size: 24 1/2 in x 11 3/4 in / 63 cm x 30 cm

Price: $8800.00

“To bring home the name of the product, Mucha created a discreet flirtation which embodies the 19th century ideal of a romantic encounter: the girl demure and coy, the gentleman persuasive, the setting a fragrant garden. But he didn’t forget the sponsor: The wrought-iron gate carries the name, and the girl’s dress features a print pattern of the letters L-U, a subtle decorative reminder” (Gold, p. 46)

"Flirt was a brand of biscuits sold by Lefèvre-Utile, but that becomes almost irrelevant to admirers of this classic depiction of love blossoming. Indeed, it's almost impossible to avoid falling in love with the Victorian elegance on display, with romantic effusiveness held at bay—with difficulty!—for the moment. You can just barely see the baker's L-U logo patterned on the damsel's dress, and doesn't that just take the biscuit? ” (Rennert)

Alphonse Mucha self-portrait in front of the poster intended for Sarah Bernhardt, in her studio located rue du Val-de-Grâce in Paris, around 1901. Public domain photo.