The Virginia Museum of Fine Arts is pleased to have works from its collection on view at the Taubman Museum of Art in their special exhibition Eternally New: The Art Nouveau World of Alphonse Mucha.
The exhibition features nearly 50 original posters, books, lithographs, sculptures, and other decorative items on loan from VMFA, with additional period pieces from other regional collections, including a penny-farthing bicycle, couture dresses, and jewelry.
Art Nouveau, or “new art,” is an international style of art and architecture that exploded in Paris at the turn of the 20th-century as Czech-born artist Alphonse Mucha rose to prominence. His work came to define the look of the fin-de-siècle and the essence of Belle Époque.
Mucha’s work transcends this period, however, with his impact felt throughout the decades in works ranging from the Grateful Dead’s concert posters and the “Flower Power” movement of the 1960s to manga comics, street artists, and even tattoo art today. The Taubman Art Museum’s exhibition includes several of these latter-day artists through videos and large-scale images, highlighting the influences of Mucha’s work. The experience also includes an accompanying Immersive Art Experience from the Grand Palais in Paris.
The exhibition Eternally New: The Art Nouveau World of Alphonse Mucha is organized by the Taubman Museum of Art with works from the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts. The immersive experience is organized by the Grand Palais Immersif and Mucha Foundation. TechnicoFlor is responsible for the creation of the olfactory experience.
Lady with Daisy (Femme à Marguerite), 1898–1900, Alphonse Mucha (Czech, active in France, 1860–1939), cotton velveteen. Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, Swenson Art Nouveau Fund, 2008.37