Original Maitres De L'Affiche - Pl 41 Musee Grevin Cheret

This is an original colour lithographic plate from Les Maîtres de l'Affiche — one of the most celebrated art publications of the Belle Époque, conceived by Jules Chéret and printed at the Imprimerie Chaix in Paris between 1895 and 1900. The series reproduced 256 of the finest posters of the era in a refined small format, issued to subscribers in monthly sets of four. Plate 41 reproduces Chéret's 1896 poster for the Pantomimes Lumineuses of Émile Reynaud at the Musée Grévin, one of the most memorable images of the series and a joyful tribute to the birth of animated cinema.

Jules Chéret (1836–1932), widely regarded as the father of the modern poster, captures the wonder of Reynaud's invention with all the qualities that made his name: fluid figures, vibrant colour and constant movement. At the centre, a graceful female muse seems to emerge from the light itself, floating in a kaleidoscope of stars, with swirling ribbons and dynamic colour gradients giving the whole composition a dreamlike quality perfectly suited to its subject.

The poster promotes Reynaud's Théâtre Optique, a pioneering animation projection system that predates cinema as we know it. Before the Lumière brothers amazed audiences with their cinématographe, Reynaud was enchanting Parisians with hand-painted picture sequences that brought drawings to life, accompanied by music composed by Gaston Paulin. This plate is far more than an advertisement: it is a visual homage to a moment when science, art and fantasy met, and a landmark both in Chéret's prolific career and in the Maîtres de l'Affiche collection as a whole.

This example is in excellent condition — grade A — and is presented unframed, ready for the wall it deserves.

A Belle Époque collector's piece — Chéret's luminous muse, celebrating the dawn of animated cinema at the Musée Grévin.