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Theophille
Alexandre Steinlen was born in Switzerland, where he studied
art at Lausanne and later became active as a textile designer in Mulhause.
In 1882 he arrived in Paris where he worked as an illustrator for
the journals Mirliton, Assiette au Beurre, Chat Noir, and Gil Blas,
for which he produced over four hundred lithographs. |
As an artist he was not merely a commercial success but showed great
sensitivity toward his subject matter. Besides illustrating advertisements
for a variety of products, Steinlen was famous for his posters of
cabaret and music hall performers. Perhaps the most noteworthy of
these is one done for the French singer Yvette Guilbert's performances
at the cabaret Les Ambassadeurs, executed in 1894. Guilbert preferred
Steinlen's posters to another famous version, done by Henri
Toulouse-Lautrec, in which the artist distorted her features and
figure, making her appear thin and bony to the point of freakishness.
The two artists are often compared, although Steinlen's poster art,
drawn with the same bold simplicity as Lautrec's, is marked by an
air of sweetness and a quieter mood. However, his later work for the
journals, like that of Lautrec, became increasingly satirical and
critical of society. Steinlen, too, often drew genre scenes of the
working class, capturing day-to-day life in Paris with a simple, endearing
style. He was very found of animals, especially cats, and often included
them in his posters. Steinlen's cats proved so popular, in fact, that
they became a trademark of his work.
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