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| 1902 Cappiello in his studio at 194 Boulevard Malesherbes, Paris |
Leonetto Cappiello (1875 – 1942) was an Italian/French poster artist and
painter, who mainly lived and worked in Paris. He is now often called 'the
father of modern advertising' because of his innovation in poster design. The
early advertising poster was characterised by a painterly quality as evidenced
by early poster artists Jules Chéret,
Alfred Choubrac and Hugo D'Alesi. Cappiello, like other young artists, worked
in way that was almost the opposite of his predecessors. He was the first
poster artist to use bold figures popping out of black backgrounds, a startling
contrast to the posters early norm.
Cappiello’s
career as a poster artist began in earnest in 1900 when he began a contract
with the printer Pierre Vercasson.
In this period, the printers would act as an agent for artists and commission
work to them. Vercasson had a print house, and his goal was to bring vibrancy
and colour to the streets of Paris, he wanted the posters that he produced to
stand out from the rest and attract lucrative new advertisers to his agency.
Of
course living in Paris, he was aware of the current art scene, and had seen
many examples of Cappiello’s work, including a small number of posters already
produced and in particular those for Le Frou-Frou. He knew that Cappiello had
the potential to be exactly what he was looking for. The relationship commenced
with the arrangement that Vercasson would find the clients and brief Cappiello
on the product. It was then up to Cappiello to produce a sketch for the client
for which he would receive the fee of 500 francs, a good amount at the time.
Once the design had been approved by the client, a full size design would be
produced for the poster at a size of 1x1.4m, an old French paper standard known
as the Double Grand Aigle. Cappiello would also be responsible for ensuring the
successful transfer of the design onto lithographic stone ready for printing.
Between 1901 and 1914, he created several hundred
posters in a style that revolutionised the art of poster design. During World
War I, Cappiello worked as an interpreter in Italy. After the First World War Cappiello returned to
producing posters. His first meeting with Devambez in 1918 marked the start of
a long discussion: three years later he signed an exclusive contract with the
Paris publisher for whom he designed now famous icons: such as Kub, Campari,
Paraluie Revel, Pirelli, Chocolat Klaus and Poudre de Luzy, and the famous
entertainer Mistinguett at the Casino de Paris. Unlike Vercasson, Devambez did
not have its own print house, and had the posters printed at a number of large
printers. The agency concentrated on finding new clients from across Europe,
and successfully spread Cappiello’s celebrated works across the continent. He
remained with the agency until 1936..
This is part 1 of a 6-part post on the
works of Leonetto Cappiello:
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| 1898 Citronnade a L'Ananas lithograph by Imprimerie P. Vercasson & Cie., Paris |
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| 1899 Le Frou Frou lithograph by La Lithographie Nouvelle, Asnières ( Seine ) |
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| 1900 Absinthe lithograph 152 x 105 cm by Imprimerie Publicitè Vercasson & Cie., Paris |
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| 1900 Amandines de Provence lithograph by Imprimerie P. Vercasson & Cie., Paris |
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| 1900 Cachou Lajaunie lithograph by Imprimerie P. Vercasson & Cie., Paris |
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| 1900 Folies Bergère ( proof before lettering being applied ) lithograph 130 x 90 cm by Imprimerie Chaix, Paris |
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| 1900 Folies Bergère lithograph 130 x 90 cm by Imprimerie Chaix, Paris |
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| 1900 Hélène Chauvin lithograph 130 x 90 cm by Imprimerie Chaix (Atelier Chéret), Paris |
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| 1900 Juguetes lithograph 111 x 76 cm by Imprimerie Publicitè Vercasson & Cie., Paris |
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| 1900 Katabexine comprimés effervescents lithograph by Imprimerie P. Vercasson & Cie., Paris |
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| 1900 La Revue Illustrée lithograph 164 x 112 cm by Imprimerie P. Vercasson & Cie., Paris |
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| 1900 Odette Dulac lithograph 140 x 99 cm by Imprimerie Publicitè Vercasson & Cie., Paris |
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| 1901 Absinthe Ducros fils lithograph 142 x 102 cm by Imprimerie Publicitè Vercasson & Cie., Paris |
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| 1901 El Perfume lithograph 111 x 74 cm by Imprimerie P. Vercasson & Cie., 43, Rue de Lancry, Paris |
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| 1901 Livorno Stagione Balneare lithograph 154 x 103 cm by Officine G. Ricordi & C., Milan |
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| 1902 Champagne De Rochecré ithograph by Imprimerie P. Vercasson & Cie., Paris |
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| 1902 Corset le Furet lithograph 140 x 100 cm by Imprimerie Publicitè Vercasson & Cie., Paris |
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| 1902 Folies Bergère - Louise Balthy lithograph 141 x 105 cm by Imprimerie Publicitè Vercasson & Cie., Paris |
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| 1902 Pur Champagne Damery-Epernay lithograph 139 x 99 cm by Imprimerie Publicitè Vercasson & Cie., Paris |
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| 1902 Théâtre du Vaudeville la Passerelle - Rentrée de RÉJANE ithograph 139 x 99 cm by Imprimerie Publicitè Vercasson & Cie., Paris |
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| 1903 Charbon Chimique Rubaudo ithograph 136 x 100 cm by Imprimerie Publicitè Vercasson & Cie., Paris |
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| 1903 Chocolat Klaus lithograph 161 x 119 cm by Imprimerie P. Vercasson & Cie., Paris |
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| 1903 Huîtres Exquises lithograph 99 x 140 cm by Imprimerie Publicitè Vercasson & Cie., Paris |
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| 1903 Katabexine lithograph 143 x 103 cm by Imprimerie Publicitè Vercasson & Cie., Paris |
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| 1903 La Damnation de Faaust, par Cappiello lithograph 27 x 20 cm published in "Paris Illustré" |
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| 1903 Valdespiino wine ( proof before lettering being applied ) lithograph 140 x 100 cm by Imprimerie P. Vercasson & Cie., Paris |
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| 1903 Valdespiino wine lithograph by Imprimerie P. Vercasson & Cie., Paris |
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| 1904 Citronnade à l'Ananas lithograph 142 x 103 cm by Imprimerie Publicitè Vercasson & Cie., Paris |
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| 1904 E. & A. Mele & Ci. lithograph by Officine G. Ricordi & C., Milan |
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| 1904 La Marquisette Liquer de Dessert lithograph 140 x 101 cm by Imp. P. Vercasson & Cie., Paris |
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| 1904 Le Friquet ( Theatre Play ) lithograph 140 x 100 cm by Imprimerie P. Vercasson & Cie., Paris |
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| 1904 The Golden Light by George Daring lithograph 200 x 130 cm by Imprimerie P. Vercasson & Cie., Paris |
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| 1905 Anis Infernal lithograph 161 x 122 cm by Imprimerie P. Vercasson & Cie., Paris |
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| 1905 Cafés Labrador lithograph 141 x 101 cm by Imprimerie Publicitè Vercasson & Cie., Paris |
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| 1905 Coñac del Caballo Verde lithograph 140 x 102 cm by Imprimerie P. Vercasson & Cie., Paris |
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| 1905 El Gramophone lithograph 162 x 122 cm by Imprimerie P. Vercasson & Cie., Paris |
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| 1905 J. Ricard Léognan lithograph 141 x 101 cm by Imprimerie Publicitè Vercasson & Cie., Paris |
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| 1905 Le Petit Coquin lithograph 140 x 100 cm by Imprimerie Publicitè Vercasson & Cie., Paris |
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| 1905 Menthe-Pastille lithograph 200 x 129 cm by Imprimerie Publicitè Vercasson & Cie., Paris |
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| 1905 Sodas Scarpatett lithograph 139 x 99 cm by Imprimerie Publicitè Vercasson & Cie., Paris |
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| 1905 TOG Quinquina lithograph 130 x 100 cm by Imprimerie P. Vercasson & Cie., Paris |
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| 1905 Vins Authentiques des Graves lithograph by Imprimerie P. Vercasson & Cie., Paris |
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| 1905 Xèrez-Quina-Ruiz Felix Ruiz y Ruiz Jerez lithograph 140 x 100 cm by Imprimerie P. Vercasson & Cie., Paris |
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| 1906 Automobiles Brasier lithograph 162 x 122 cm by Imprimerie P. Vercasson & Cie., Paris |
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| 1906 Cachou Lajaunie lithograph 140 x 99 cm by Imprimerie Publicitè Vercasson & Cie., Paris |
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| 1906 Cervezas la Cruz del Campo lithograph 162 x 122 cm by Imprimerie Publicitè Vercasson & Cie., Paris |
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| 1906 Compania Colonial lithograph 200 x 130 cm by Imprimerie P. Vercasson & Cie., Paris |
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| 1906 Docteur Rasurel "Sous Vetements Hygieniques" lithograph by Imprimerie P. Vercasson & Cie., Paris |
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| 1906 Docteur Rasurel "Sous Vetements Hygieniques" lithograph 158 x 119 cm by Imprimerie P. Vercasson & Cie., Paris |