LILAS || Christa Zaat

Christa Zaat



Alfons Maria Mucha (Czechoslovakian Art Nouveau painter) 1860 - 1939
Madonna of the Lilies, 1905
oil on canvas
55.9 x 74.6 cm. (22.01" x 29.37")
private collection

In 1902, Mucha was commissioned to decorate a church in Jerusalem dedicated to the Virgin Mary. Shown here is the final version of Madonna of the Lilies, one of the murals for the church. The project was cancelled later for unknown reasons, so all that remains of this commission is this painting and earlier versions of it (Sakai City collection, Japan), as well as a design for a stained-glass window, Harmony, which is also in the Mucha Trust collection.
According to Mucha's letter to his wife Maruška, he conceived the subject as 'Virgo purissima', thus depicting the heavenly vision of Madonna, surrounded with a mass of lilies, symbol of purity. The seated young girl in Slavic folk costume carries a wreath of ivy leaves, symbol of remembrance. Her serious expression and strong physical presence contrast with the ethereal figure of the Virgin.

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Born in Ivancice, Moravia near the city of Brno in the modern day Czech Republic, Alfons Mucha began his artistic training taking drawing lessons at the Academy of Visual Arts in Prague and continued his studies in Munich. In 1890, the young artist moved on to Paris and enrolled in the Academie Julien where he was the student of J. P. Laurens, Gustave Boulanger and Lefebvre.

While in Paris, Mucha began to draw illustrations for books and magazines. In 1894, almost overnight, based on a poster he designed for a play starring Sarah Bernhardt, Gismonda, he became a success. Although widely regarded as one of the premier artists of the Art Nouveau period, Mucha shared much in philosophy and artistic temperament with the artists of the Symbolist movement. The composition of his posters was influenced by Dante Gabriel Rossetti and Carlos Scwabe and the atmosphere surrounding the Salons de la Rose + Croix as well as by Byzantine and Japanese art. Although most renowned for his poster designs, the artist himself set more store by his other projects. In 1898-1899, he did a series of illustrations for The Lord's Prayer adding personal comments which echoed those of the founder of the Rose + Croix, Joseph Peladan. The crowning achievement of his career was the monumental series, The Slav Epic; twenty huge canvases that marked his return to the history painting of his youth.