The Quartier Latin. A magazine devoted to the arts 1890

Curator: Here we have an enchanting poster from 1890, designed by Louis Rhead. It's titled "The Quartier Latin. A magazine devoted to the arts." Editor: It’s really charming, actually! I love the way the artist uses such bold colors and shapes. She almost looks like she could be in a modern cartoon. There is an aspect in the work, that brings a bit joy. Curator: Rhead’s poster encapsulates the burgeoning magazine culture of the late 19th century, a period where art periodicals significantly influenced aesthetic tastes and the art market. Note the overt reference to the magazine's commitment; it signals the era's democratizing access to the arts. Editor: Absolutely, and what a self-aware way of signaling it! Look how deliberately posed the model is. It makes me smile that such an iconic magazine would see fit to show its artistic soul through an archetypical artist figure like that, just calmly painting away! Curator: It’s certainly a strategic choice that leverages popular interest in the artist figure, aligning the publication with both traditional artistic values and the more modern, accessible visual language we see emerging in poster art at the time. She sits on a stone, but wears modern robes of her own time, and stares into a painting of the future, it looks like. Editor: Yes, she seems poised. But maybe what’s most striking to me is the way the poster uses those flat planes of colour – blocks of reds and blues with heart shapes as the gown design!. You look into that face and want to know: What do her artistic ideas include? Maybe if you looked into one of those pages... Curator: It's quite clever how Rhead simplified the aesthetic of fine art, while still evoking its cultural weight, making it accessible and appealing to a broader public and driving social changes. Editor: Seeing it laid out in such bold form and color is inspiring and definitely invites curiosity...I have so many emotions right now! I think I should go pick up the next magazine issue on my way home today! Curator: An astute conclusion, which gets to the core function of this vibrant and intriguing poster.