Alphonse Maria Mucha

Alphonse Mucha (1860-1939), a Czech-born artist, is best known for his posters of Sarah Bernhardt and his Art Nouveau-esque nymphs. However, he has been unjustly pigeonholed as a mere decorative artist. This engrossing, profusely illustrated biography by the artist's son aims to raise Mucha's reputation, revealing that he saw himself as an uncompromising independent, an interpreter of the Slavonic soul, even as he was influenced by the swirling eddies of Symbolism, Art Nouveau, the Viennese Secession, and other movements.

In turn-of-the-century Paris, Mucha found an ally in the outcast Gauguin, and his loose circle included Whistler, Strindberg, and Verlaine. Caught up in the Symbolists' heady mix of occultism and theosophy, he attended seances and recorded dialogues with spirits. Later, in New York, where he finally settled down to married life, great wealth eluded him despite theatrical projects with Maud Adams and Ethel Barrymore.

Mucha's Slav Epic, a cycle of idealized, luminous historical paintings, is worthy of its name. Anyone who thinks of him primarily as a flowery artist will have second thoughts after seeing the intense charcoal-and-pastel sketches and other strong works reproduced in this biography, such as the haunting "Dead Woman with Child" (1900).

The biography by the artist's son presents a compelling portrait of Mucha as an uncompromising independent, an interpreter of the Slavonic soul, rather than just a decorative artist. It reveals the depth and breadth of his artistic interests and influences, from Symbolism and Art Nouveau to the Viennese Secession, as well as his involvement in the occult and his later struggles to find success in New York. The book's detailed exploration of Mucha's Slav Epic and other powerful works challenges the narrow perception of him as a merely decorative artist, showcasing his versatility and artistic vision.

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