Sometimes (ok, too often) I buy posters not because they are ''important'' or necessarily ''sellable'', but because there is something about them which compels me to own them. This works well when you are a collector, less well when you are a dealer. But regardless of whether you are buying for pleasure or for business, poster buyers buy because there is something close to a need to buy - something about the poster which speaks to them, which forces them - almost - to reach into their pocket... (I make the same argument when I shop for shoes, but that''s another matter.) I found this poster in the basement of a poster dealer in Marseilles, and aside from the fact that it was expensive, I didnt know very much about it. But there was something about the colors - subdued and in shades of ecru, orange and mushroom - and the images, and the fact that every inch of the poster was covered with detail which mademe reach once more into my pretty empty pockets to search for crumbs. The poster hung on my wall for quite some time and I was unable to find out much about it - I asked my South African friends for help - figuring that Africaans was close to Dutch - but they came up with red herrings. I asked every Dutch client and friend, but to no avail. Until, until, until one kind and generous client pointed me in the right direction and told me just about everything I needed to know: that the symbol/stamp/chop of the artist in the bottom right hand corner of the poster (near the date stamp) is of the artist known as van der Vecht, that the printer (Senefelder, of Amsterdam) was known as one of the best at the time, and still, and that the poster promoted a business school which was located on a street called Overtoom which still exists in the busy city of Amsterdam. Mercury, the god of business, trade, profit and commerce, is shown with an owl, the Athenian symbol of wisdom - perhaps in the hope that the graduates of this particular school will make money wisely? - and the whole poster is, to me at least, a marvel of what I call Gothic Art Nouveau. This poster is rather rare - the Dutch weren''t as prolific as the French or Belgians with their poster art - and its size, coloration and subject matter make it not only spectacular, but valuable and quite a find. Poster measures 29 x 41 inches, is linen backed and in very good A- condition. Please note that all of our posters, prints, pochoirs and ephemera are vintage, non- reproduction works of art. Status: For Sale Reference#: vander Condition: A- Year: 1917 Country: Holland Height: 41 in. (104.14 cm) Width: 29 in. (73.66 cm) Title: RARE Dutch Vintage Poster 1917 GOTHIC ART NOUVEAU FAB!! - Materials: paper (linen backed)

Art (paintings, prints, frames)
Vintage Posters