Late 19th Century French Vintage “Cycles Andru” Poster

$2,800

About

Decorate a game room or exercise room with this large and colorful antique Belle Epoque poster! Created by artist Dourzinelle circa 1890 for Andru Cycles, the wonderfully made stone lithograph features an elegantly dressed woman in the center foreground of the image. A winding road extends out behind her, with fields and the outline of a town in the background, creating a picturesque country scene. The use of both realistic details and fluid curving lines coupled with bold block typography creates a classically Belle Epoque period advertising poster. This poster has been professionally linen backed. Virtually all original vintage posters of this era were viewed as temporary advertising and were printed on fragile, thin paper. While expensive, linen backing is a conservation method used to mount, stabilize, preserve, and protect vintage posters so they can be displayed or framed without compromising value. Vintage posters are the original form of advertising. These posters, made to advertise products, were never intended to last; they were hung outdoors, rained on, and eventually torn down or covered up. The early process of stone lithography created beautiful images, but quantities were small; generally, only 2,000 to 3,000 were printed. The examples that have survived are those that were not displayed; they are the extras that didn’t get used. By the 1950s, posters were being printed using processes much more technologically advanced than labor-intensive stone lithography. Modern Era Posters are crisp, vibrant, and capture the riders at the perfect moment in time. Official race posters have bold color schemes that jump off the wall. From its roots in the second half of the 1800s, contemporary posters continue to tell the ever-evolving story of cycling. Measures: 48.75W x 65″H.

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