Gitanes c1960 French Cigarette Advertising Poster, Lefor Openo

Wonderfully quirky and contemporary design by Lefor-Openo features on this original 1960s French advertising poster for cigarette brand Gitanes.

In the 1950s and 1960s, Marie Claire Lefort and Marie Francine Oppeneau produced a series of bold posters. The two women met in art school, and then studied together at the Ecole Paul Colin in Paris. They produced charming posters for the Loterie Nationale, Charles De Gaulle's political campaign and other commissions under the pseudonym Lefor-Openo. Marie Lefort died in 1971 but her partner Marie Oppeneau opened a gallery in St. Cloud, France in 1980, and another art gallery in Paris in 1990 which she called called Lefor-Openo in honor of her friend and creative partner. 

▼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 poster was rolled and has now been professionally linen-backed and is sized 9 3/4 x 13 inches (plus a couple extra inches for linen).  It will be sent rolled (unframed)

• Year: c1960
  
• Poster Type: French Advertising
  
• Style: -
• Art By: Lefor Openo
  
• Rolled/Folded/Other: Rolled Linen-backed
  
• Condition: Near Mint/Mint
  
• Condition Details: Professionally linen-backed with just very light touch-up. Looks fantastic.