Jules Chéret and the transformation of the illustrated poster: innovations in lithography and the Belle Époque aesthetic

Chéret renewed the world of poster design in the late 19th century, mastering color lithography and introducing the vibrant, cheerful “Chérettes” that came to symbolize the Belle Époque.

The illustrated poster is experiencing real development thanks to improvements in the lithographic technique, although the color reproduction is not satisfactory. Jules Chéret (1836–1932), staying in London in the years 1859–1866, perfected the art of lithography, learning to master the new printing techniques of color on large formats. In 1866, back in Paris, he founded his own printing company and published the first chromolithographic posters. By giving the poster all the possibilities of color, he immediately places it as close as possible to the aesthetic and scientific concerns of his time. The bright spots of the posters on the walls seem to support the impressionist statement, “black is not in nature“, or testify to the research of color theorists, like Charles Henry, who establish the laws of contrast and chromatic rhythm, from which many artists will therefore draw inspiration.

In 1881, he sold his printing house, which had become an important business, to the Chaix printing company, while retaining the artistic direction of his workshop in which René Péan, Lucien Lefèvre and Georges Meunier worked. More than a thousand posters were produced in his workshop in just over thirty years. Numerous “jobbing works“and illustrated city works (invitations, menus, calendars, etc.) are also designed there. Chéret depicts a type of cheerful, light woman, symbolizing the “Parisian“, whose eroticism is always suggested. His “chérettes“, as they were known during the Belle Époque, invaded the palisades and occupied a special place in the series of publications Les maîtres de l’affiche.

At the turn of the century, little by little, Chéret left the poster for the mural painting. Baron Joseph Vitta entrusted him with the decoration of his villa La Sapinière in Evian (1895-96), subsequently he decorated the salons of the Paris City Hall (1898 to 1902 ) and many private properties.

Documents from Les Silos, Chaumont-en-Champagne; and Signes Archives.