Five Spirals for December - #2 "Princenza Hyacinta" by Alphonse Mucha (Updated 1/8/2024; Rodin)

Princezna Hyacinta (Princess Hyacinth), 1911, Alphonse Mucha.
Geometry: 2023, DS.

"One of Mucha's best Czech posters, printed by the firm of V. Neubert in the Smichov quarter of Prague, was for Princezna Hyacinta, a fairy-tale ballet and pantomime with music by Oskar Nedbal and libretto by Ladislav Novák. The portrait of the popular actress Andula Sedlácková as the princess dominates the poster. The plot develops as a dream of a village blacksmith who falls asleep after digging for a buried treasure. In his dreams he becomes lord of a castle, and his daughter Hanicka becomes the Princess Hyacinth. Of her three suitors, one is a sorcerer who abducts her to his underground palace, but she is rescued by a poor knight who looks like her real-life lover. Mucha used the motif of the hyacinth throughout the entire design, from embroideries to silver jewelry, and for an elaborate circle sparkling against the mossy green background. The portrait of the actress is seen against a sky full of stars and encircled with images from the dream: the blacksmith's tools, a gold crown, hearts speared by arrows of love, the sorcerer's alchemical vessels, and his strange monsters." 

- Via this poster auction page, Princess Hyacinth is a perfect example of  Czech artist, Alphonse Mucha's elegant use of a grand circle in the background of many of his designs. While not all of his designs featuring circles also feature golden spirals, his adorable princess features two, and very nice ones! They're almost mirroring each other, except for the difference in orientation. (See above and inset left.)

"Mucha arrived in Paris in 1887. He was in the fortunate position of being supported by a wealthy patron and he was to enjoy this support for a further three years. With the withdrawal of the Count's support, however, leaner times loomed. Mucha learnt to survive on a diet of lentils and beans and began to eke out a living by providing illustrations for a variety of magazines and books. Once started, he was soon able to establish himself as a successful and reliable illustrator. 

But it was on St Stephen's Day (December 26th) in 1894 that fate singled Mucha out once again. He was doing a favour for a friend, correcting proofs at Lemercier's printing works, when Sarah Bernhardt, the star of the Parisian stage, called de Brunhoff, the printer's agent, with an immediate demand for a new poster for her production of Gismonda. All the regular Lemercier artists were on holiday, so de Brunhoff turned to Mucha in desperation. A demand from 'la divine Sarah' could not be ignored."

- Via this biographical page on the comprehensive Mucha Foundation website, we discover a bit of the serendipity that seemed to be an important element of his career as an artist. He often seemed to be in the right place at the right time. Coming to the attention of Sarah Bernhardt, the most celebrated stage actress in Paris during the Fin de Siècle (and a force to be reckoned with), was just the opportunity he needed to showcase his talents. His posters for Sarah, such as the one inset right above, were so popular that his work became much in demand. As for Sarah, she had artistic skills of her own (see this post).

"We had rooms next to one another, so we lay on our beds with the doors open. Rodin must have been considerably disturbed because after a while he suggested we should walk around the rooms a bit. I got up and we took a little stroll in our nightshirts, but soon Rodin began to be rather worried because there was a gathering noise outside. Suddenly he grabbed my sleeve. From the street there came a mighty roar like an explosion: “Vive Rodin! Vive la France!” No chance of a rest now, Rodin rushed away from the window and from that moment avoided it like the plague, giving it a wide berth."

- Via this Mucha Foundation page, we have Mucha's description of an amusing moment in time spent with his friend, French sculptor, Auguste Rodin, during Rodin's visit to Prague in May of 1902. Inset left is a photo of the two comrades looking rather dandy - Rodin is on the left - sourced from the Arthive. Then again, and we know this from prior experience, one would have a hard time finding a popular artist at the turn of the century who did not know Rodin; that cat got around!*

***

While I've found Italian Golden connections, French Golden connections, Dutch Golden connections and, finally, the Greek omphalos from which it was spawned, fate left my best discovery till last: Alphonse Mucha, our first Slavic Golden connection... and a true Master of the form. Seriously, his spirals are so spot-on, they are almost diagrams of the golden ratio mechanism itself. Look and learn... and the first thing you will absorb is the usefulness of one strategically placed grand circle in your design; it's relationship to the golden triangle being the golden key to the "divine proportion."

I say no more, but if you are a collector of Mucha's work, you have more gold in your collection than you probably realized; you have some of the most excellent examples of the golden ratio utilized in artwork.

And Mucha was very prolific and his talents were many. He was a graphic artist and an illustrator producing numerous advertising posters, political posters, decorative panels, book and magazine illustrations. He was a serious Symbolist painter - inset right is said to be his portrait of his daughter, the artist Jaroslava Muchová. He was also a mural painter. But, that's not all...

(More below the jump...)

Railroad poster advertising travel to Monaco and Monte-Carlo, 1897, Alphonse Mucha.
Geometry: 2023, DS.

Mucha was also an artisan, interior designer... and author! From his Wiki entry we have:

"Mucha's many interests included jewelry. His 1902 book, Documents Decoratifs, contained plates of elaborate designs for brooches and other pieces, with swirling arabesques and vegetal forms, with incrustations of enamel and colored stones. In 1899 he collaborated with the jeweler Georges Fouquet to make a bracelet for Sarah Bernhardt in the form of a serpent, made of gold and enamel, similar to the costume jewelry Bernhardt wore in Medea. According to Jiri Mucha, this bracelet was created to conceal Bernhardt's arthritic wrist. The spiraling design of the snake is a nod to Mucha's swirling Art Nouveau painting style. The Cascade pendant designed for Fouquet by Mucha (1900) is in the form of a waterfall, composed of gold, enamel, opals, tiny diamonds, paillons, and a barocco or misshapen pearl. After the 1900 Exposition, Fouquet decided to open a new shop at 6 Rue Royale, across the street from the restaurant Maxim's. He asked Mucha to design the interior."

His lovely pendant, the Cascade, is shown inset left and his interior for Fouquet's jewelry shop is below; both images were sourced from Mucha's Wiki page.

Oh, before I forget, he was also an amateur photographer, a musician, a teacher, and a member of the Parisian masonic lodge, Grand Orient de France.

But, possibly one concern of the most importance to him was his Czech ancestry, Czech nationalism, and the Pan-Slavic political movement, which was a noble (but doomed) effort to unite the many varied Slavic nationalities all "under one roof," so to speak. Ideally, it's intent was not limited to establishing a true solidarity amongst the Slavic "tribes" but to rejuvenate European culture, which - although not necessarily intentionally - tended to overlook or misidentify Slavic contributions.

To this end, Mucha undertook his largest project: The Slav Epic.

"This was a series of 20 monumental paintings narrating the history of the Slavs since their mythic origin. It was not a commission, this was a personal project. He worked on it for 18 years, from 1910 to 1928. This poster marks the first exhibition of the entire work. The multifaceted figure is Svantovit, the pagan Czech god of destiny... Moreover, Mucha used his daughter as a model for the woman in the front."

The quote and the image below were sourced from the Daily Art magazine article: Alphonse Mucha's Pan-Slavic posters. Inset left (above) is a self-portrait of (and by) Mucha. (Got to love the irony in his expression.!)

Poster for the Slav Epic exhibition, 1926, Alphonse Mucha.
Geometry: 2023, DS.

I think of all the golden spirals I've documented on the blog, the one above is one of the best. Not only does the figure slump into the triangle, but look at the way the tendrils of smoke climb up and conform to it's dimensions with, finally, one tendril flying out of the spiral's termination! If Mucha did not deliberately embed this spiral, then the unconscious mind is far more brilliant (and devious) than we generally give it credit for!

Which brings us to the last spiral image presented here: The Dance, one of four images - and the best - representing the arts Mucha executed in 1898. Not only is the dancing figure perfectly contained within the triangle, but the spiral itself is supported on a large, ornate (crescent-shaped) lune. Note how carefully the spiral terminates around the curve of the woman's hand.. at the same time facing - and touching - the spirals of her hair! Coincidence?

One last "coincidence": note that Mucha's spirals always involve beautiful women. I believe these women, every one, are his Venuses.

The Dance - 1898, Alphonse Mucha.
Geometry: 2023, DS.

Tragically, Mucha, our Master of Spirals, died of pneumonia in 1939, his health shattered when Hitler's Gestapo marched into Prague and claimed it for the Reich. Mucha, a Czech nationalist and, worse still, a Freemason, was arrested and interrogated for several days... for an artist, a fatal proposition. A month after he died, WWII was declared, the saving grace being that, at least, he missed it!

For more Mucha, see this Widewalls page; 13 posters by Alphonse Mucha You Must Know; Behind his paintings, the Drawings of Alphonse Mucha, and this video.

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Naakte vrouw of Venus omcirkeld door putti (Naked woman or Venus encircled by Putti),
Auguste Rodin, 1882 - 1888. Geometry: 2024, DS.

* (Updated 1/8/2024) The spirals are flying fast and furiously these days; I honestly don't know what I'll find or be posting next.

For instance, just found at the website sponsored by the wonderful Rijks Museum in Amsterdam, we have this unusual print by Auguste Rodin (above) - Naked Woman or Venus encircled by Putti (also found here).  At first, upon it's discovery, I was thrilled. Rodin knew about the pentagonal golden spiral and it's enigmatic connection with Venus/Aphrodite! And, judging by the unique form of the spiral used - one whose import I've only recently recognized - he had given it some careful contemplation.

Then I took a closer look... and upon reassessing the print's title, well, I'm not sure what Rodin had in mind when he created this image. Oh, the presence of the spiral (and its iconic triangle) is a no brainer - yes, it's plainly there - but if you look closely at the Venus figure and those nasty little putti, you might be forgiven if you decided this image was actually the work of Edvard Munch. Inset right is a detail. Click and wonder.

Rodin was in the midst of his affair with Camille Claudel when he executed this print. It's not clear whether or not he had yet met Alphonse Mucha. One possible explanation for the peculiar dark cast to this image, however, is that Rodin had also begun illustrating Baudelaire's Les Fleur du mal (see Rodin's timeline in this post). Perhaps, he was just getting into the spirit of things.

Next up: One Winter's Night... by Erté