Brides les Bains 1929 French Railway Travel Advertising Poster, Leon Benigni

We love the wonderfully chic Art Deco design by Leon Benigni that features on this original 1929 Brides les Bains French Railway Travel Advertising Poster.

Nestled in the valley of three mountains in the Savoie region of southeastern France, spa town Brides-les-Bains is, as noted here, "the station of the elegant woman".

This poster was created for the French Railway, P.L.M. – Paris, Lyon, Mediterranee. These three train hubs were the main departure points for rail travel in France during the 1920’s and into the 1930’s.

▼France has a long and rich history in poster design that dates back to the mid-19th century.... CLICK TO READ MORE

One of the most influential figures in the development of vintage posters was the French poster artist Jules Chéret. Around 1866, Chéret is credited with producing the first colour lithograph posters, using a technique he refined from the black and white process first invented by German actor and playwright Alois Senefelder in 1798. Cheret's three stone lithographic process allowed artists to achieve every colour in the rainbow using just three stones - usually red, yellow and blue - printed in careful registration.

The Parisian artists, headed by Cheret and including masters Steinlen, Willette, Grasset, Bonnard, Forain and, last but certainly not least, Toulouse-Lautrec's vibrant and eye-catching designs influenced, in part, by Japanese Woodcuts brought a new level of visual appeal to the streets of Paris and, in turn, established the poster as an art form.

The Belle Époque (Beautiful Era), a period of peace and frivolity in France from the late 19th to the early 20th century (1870-1914), played a significant role in the continued advancement of poster design. This era coincided with economic growth and the rise of a new middle class with disposable income and leisure time. It was during this time that the poster craze took hold in France, with posters being used for advertising various products, events, and entertainment.

Over the decades that followed from these auspicious beginnings French poster design continued to flourish and designers from around the world followed suit in experimenting with poster design for advertisements for cultural events, travel, film, food and drink and more.

This original vintage movie poster has been professionally linen-backed is sized an impressive 24 3/4 x 39 1/2 inches (plus a little more with the linen). It will be sent rolled (unframed).

• Year: 1920s
  
• Poster Type: French Travel Poster
  
• Style: -
• Art By:  Leon Benigni
  
• Rolled/Folded/Other: Rolled - Linen-backed
  
• Condition: Very Good
  
• Condition Details: Old linen, some fading. Light foxing throughout poster not very noticeable from the front. Wear and surface scuffs around margins. Displays magnificently considering it is nearly 100 years old!