Paris, Librairie Central des Beaux Arts, 1901. Folio (46 x 33 cm). Original print.

A beautiful print from Alphonse Mucha's quintessential Art Nouveau book, Documents décoratifs. Alfons "Alphonse" Maria Mucha (1860-1939) was a Czech decorative artist, who wanted to bring aesthetic values into arts and crafts. He invented the "Mucha Style" which soon became known as Art Nouveau. His work immediately became immensely popular and remained very sought-after ever since. This plate shows two sides of this gifted artist: his ability to produce fine images in lithography, but also his practical design skills, in this case for jewelry. Slight toning towards the edges; right outer edge (ca. 5 mm) irregular and browned, a few, tiny spots, otherwise fine. Very rare, especially in this good state.