Mucha a Firenze

For an original Valentine's Day but full of sweet beauty, let yourself be enchanted by the charm of Alphonse Mucha's women (Ivančice, 1860 – Prague, 1939). At the Museum of the Innocents, until 7 April 2024, one of the most famous Czech artists in the world is on stage: Alphonse Mucha. The seduction of Art Nouveau, curated by Tomoko Sato with the collaboration of Francesca Villanti.

Who is Mucha? Choreographer, artistic director, painter, advertiser, spiritualist who between 1800 and 1900 flooded Europe and beyond with his enveloping communication full of universal messages that he wanted democratically direct to a wide audience.

This artist, like many of his contemporaries, was born marked by various misfortunes: not admitted to the Academy of Fine Arts in Prague, he found himself attending evening art courses and surviving in Vienna at the end of the 19th century thanks to occasional jobs as a decorator, designer, ended badly due to bad luck on the part of the original client. Nothing more typical for an artist of that era than his fascination for the Parisian world which would be his second home for many years, despite repeatedly visiting the United States. The encounter with the fervent French cultural climate, including the deep friendship with Paul Gaugin, will give him that never vulgar sophistication that will lead him to seduce men and women from all over Europe with his style. “Priest at the altar of beauty” Mucha will make the concept of beauty in harmony with creation his unmistakable trait. The meeting with the actress Sarah Bernhardt, who we will recognize in many works exhibited at the Innocenti, will be fundamental: in a time when theater was life for the French, the artistic direction of its most famous actress will give it irrepressible success. How romantic it is to walk through the ancient rooms of the Florentine Museum, allowing yourself to be seduced by the faces of its women, by their never vulgar nudes, by those buttery features and by those faces of immaculate beauty surrounded by leaves, branches and flowers of Botticellian appeal. It is truly a pleasure for all the senses to walk through the rooms, a poetic journey of love perfect for a romantic Valentine's Day. Another interesting aspect of Mucha, expertly explained by captions and exhibits, is his desire to break the stereotype of an elite artist, for a niche audience, taking the path of a modern communicator, we would say an ante litteram influencer who has signed products, posters advertising, menus, perfume bottles etc. all admirable in the Innocenti galleries. The exhibition is well constructed, modern enough to wink at an audience of all ages and from different cultural backgrounds. With its very clear logical structure, concise and direct captions, it accompanies the visitor with a captivating and detailed approach, never boring but rather animated. Very young people accustomed to futurist interactivity are satisfied; advertising marketing operators who can reconstruct a successful case history here; admirers of the elegant line who will be enchanted by the endless beauty of Mucha’s Women. The location is perfect: a full immersion in Florentine history, so dear to Mucha who was enchanted by Brunelleschi's Renaissance balance, omnipresent in the architecture of the Innocenti. Mucha Style will be so penetrating in the context of Art Nouveau that it will also influence the International Exhibition in Paris. Finally, its advertising is fundamental, punctual and convincing, skillfully constructed by Arthemisia.

Valentina Niccolai