Salon des Cent, XXme Exposition du Salon des Cent 1896

Alphonse Mucha made this poster for the Salon des Cent exhibition using lithography, a printmaking process that lends itself to bold lines and flat areas of color. Look closely, and you can see how the materiality of the print – its smooth surface and graphic style – emphasizes the figure's flowing hair and contemplative pose. Mucha was interested in the aesthetic possibilities of mass production. Lithography allowed him to create relatively inexpensive artworks, accessible to a wider audience beyond the traditional elite art patrons. The poster captures the spirit of the Art Nouveau movement, which sought to integrate art into everyday life, blurring the boundaries between fine art and commercial design. The sensuous lines and decorative motifs reflect a rejection of industrial aesthetics in favor of handcrafted values. Mucha's poster reminds us that art is not just about individual expression; it's also about the social and economic forces that shape its creation and consumption.