Absinthe was first created in 1792 by Pierre Ordinaire, a French doctor living in Switzerland. His intention was to deliver the extract of the wormwood plant (which had long been known to have powerful healing effects) in a handy form.
At the end of the nineteenth century, absinthe was embraced by the literary bohemian crowd who gathered in European cafes and claimed the Green Fairy (La Fee Verte) as their muse and inspiration.
One of the most iconic art nouveau images of all, this 1896 image for Absinthe Robette by the Belgian posterist Privat-Livemont has spawned a million reproductions.
An unrecorded lithographic poster for Rosinette, Absinthe Rosé Oxygénée, printed by Camis around 1900.
Absinthe extra superior - J Edouard Pernot by Leonett Cappiello
Absinthe Parisienne poster by P.Gelis-Didot and Louis Malteste
Absinthe Vichet poster from 1896 - a quintessential Art Nouveau poster.
Leonetto Cappiello's famous poster for Absinthe Ducros Fils.
Two posters for La Fee Verte - I don't know who they were by.
This Absinthe bourgeois poster by the Mourgue brothers shows an Absinthe loving black cat enjoying a glass of the company's product. Nicknamed the'Chat Noir', it has became one of the best-loved Absinthe images.
All this publicity and the great growth of absinthe drinking caused a backlash and a large number of healthy, non-alcoholic alternatives appeared. They too had their posters both advertising their virtues and equating absinthe drinking with an early death. I shall blog about them another day.
10 comments:
Gorgeous posters. My favourite absinthe image is the one by Degas, though.
I really, really love the absinthe scene in Bram Stoker's Dracula because they got it right. No fire.
Some TV adverts are quite clever, but they are lousy to frame and hang on the wall! Which I think is why poster art remains so popular. The drawings are good, and the colours are superb.
Thanks for sharing all these great images.
Hugs, Carol
I love the Degas as well, Jedediah.
Do you know Alfons Mucha? In the 1980s, I've been to Prague several times and bought a series of Mucha posteres there, they adorned the walls of my bedroom at home for some years. I don't think the two unknown absinthe posters are by him, but the work reminds me of his.
I didn't know Mucha, Librarian, but looking at some images the second fairy poster is a very similar style, isn't it.
My brother-in-law used to tell a story about a lonely drunken stag, which went on for ages and ended with the line, "absinthe makes the hart grow fonder."
Sorry, couldn't resist!
Carol
I knew that absinthe made the sweetheart wander, Carol!
They are just glorious!
SP
Oooh, I like it. The better the pun, the louder the groans! Hugs, Carol
Lots of posters here. The one with the cat my favourite.
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