Cassandre, pseudonym of Adolphe Jean-Marie MouronNotice d'autorité personne : Cassandre
BnF, according to the international pseudonym convention described in the BnF authority file. (24 January 1901 – 17 June 1968), was a French painter, commercial poster artist, and

typeface A typeface (or font family) is a design of Letter (alphabet), letters, Numerical digit, numbers and other symbols, to be used in printing or for electronic display. Most typefaces include variations in size (e.g., 24 point), weight (e.g., light, ...

designer.

Early life and career

He was born Adolphe Jean-Marie Mouron in

Kharkiv Kharkiv, also known as Kharkov, is the second-largest List of cities in Ukraine, city in Ukraine.

, Slobidska Ukraine- autonomous unit within the Russian Empire, to French parents. As a young man, he moved to Paris, where he studied at the

École des Beaux-Arts ; ) refers to a number of influential art schools in France. The term is associated with the Beaux-Arts architecture, Beaux-Arts style in architecture and city planning that thrived in France and other countries during the late nineteenth centu ...

and at the

Académie Julian The () was a private art school for painting and sculpture founded in Paris, France, in 1867 by French painter and teacher Rodolphe Julian (1839–1907). The school was active from 1868 through 1968. It remained famous for the number and qual ...

. The popularity of posters as advertising afforded him an opportunity to work for a Parisian printing house. Inspired by

cubism Cubism is an early-20th-century avant-garde art movement which began in Paris. It revolutionized painting and the visual arts, and sparked artistic innovations in music, ballet, literature, and architecture. Cubist subjects are analyzed, broke ...

as well as

surrealism Surrealism is an art movement, art and cultural movement that developed in Europe in the aftermath of World War I in which artists aimed to allow the unconscious mind to express itself, often resulting in the depiction of illogical or dreamlike s ...

, he earned a reputation with works such as ''Bûcheron'' (Woodcutter), a poster created for a cabinetmaker that won first prize at the 1925

Exposition Internationale des Arts Décoratifs et Industriels Modernes The International Exhibition of Modern Decorative and Industrial Arts () was a specialized exhibition held in Paris, France, from April 29 (the day after it was inaugurated in a private ceremony by the President of France) to November 8, 1925 (O ...

. Cassandre became successful enough that with the help of partners he was able to set up his own advertising agency called Alliance Graphique, serving a wide variety of clients during the 1930s. He is perhaps best known for his posters advertising travel, for clients such as the

Compagnie Internationale des Wagons-Lits (; ) is a Belgian-founded French company known for providing and operating luxury trains with sleeping car, sleepers and dining cars during the late 19th and the 20th centuries, most notably the ''Orient Express''. Founded by Georges Nagelmacker ...

. He was a pioneer of

airbrush An airbrush is a small, air-operated tool that atomizes and sprays various media, most often paint, but also ink, dye, and make-up. Spray painting developed from the airbrush and is considered to employ a type of airbrush. History Up unt ...

arts. His creations for the Dubonnet wine company were among the first posters designed in a manner that allowed them to be seen by occupants in moving vehicles. His posters are memorable for their innovative graphic solutions and their frequent denotations to such painters as

Max Ernst Max Ernst (; 2 April 1891 – 1 April 1976) was a German-born painter, sculptor, printmaker, graphic artist, and poet. A prolific artist, Ernst was a primary pioneer of the Dada movement and surrealism in Europe. He had no formal artistic trai ...

and

Pablo Picasso Pablo Diego José Francisco de Paula Juan Nepomuceno María de los Remedios Cipriano de la Santísima Trinidad Ruiz y Picasso (25 October 1881 – 8 April 1973) was a Spanish painter, sculptor, printmaker, Ceramic art, ceramicist, and Scenic ...

. In addition, he taught

graphic design Graphic design is a profession, academic discipline and applied art that involves creating visual communications intended to transmit specific messages to social groups, with specific objectives. Graphic design is an interdisciplinary branch of ...

at the École des Arts Décoratifs and then at the École d'Art Graphique. With typography an important part of poster design, the company created several new typeface styles. Cassandre developed Bifur in 1929, the

sans serif In typography and lettering, a sans-serif, sans serif (), gothic, or simply sans letterform is one that does not have extending features called "serifs" at the end of strokes. Sans-serif typefaces tend to have less stroke width variation than ...

Acier Noir in 1935, and in 1937 an all-purpose font called Peignot. In 1936, his works were exhibited at the

Museum of Modern Art The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) is an art museum located in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, on 53rd Street (Manhattan), 53rd Street between Fifth Avenue, Fifth and Sixth Avenues. MoMA's collection spans the late 19th century to the present, a ...

in New York City which led to commissions from

Harper's Bazaar ''Harper's Bazaar'' (stylized as ''Harper's BAZAAR'') is an American monthly women's fashion magazine. Bazaar has been published in New York City since November 2, 1867, originally as a weekly publication entitled ''Harper's Bazar''."Corporat ...

to do cover designs.

Later career

With the onset of

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, Cassandre served in the

French army The French Army, officially known as the Land Army (, , ), is the principal Army, land warfare force of France, and the largest component of the French Armed Forces; it is responsible to the Government of France, alongside the French Navy, Fren ...

until the fall of France. His business long gone, he survived by creating stage sets and costumes for the theatre, something he had dabbled in during the 1930s. After the war, he continued this line of work while also returning to easel painting. He worked with several famous French fashion houses, designing playing cards and scarfs for

Hermès Hermès International S.A. ( , ) is a French Luxury goods, luxury fashion house established in 1837. It specializes in leather goods, silk goods, lifestyle accessories, home furnishings, perfumery, jewelry, watches and ready-to-wear. Since the ...

and the well-known Yves Saint Laurent logo. In his later years, Cassandre suffered from bouts of depression prior to his suicide in Paris in June 1968. He was buried in the Parisian

Montparnasse Cemetery Montparnasse Cemetery () is a cemetery in the Montparnasse quarter of Paris, in the city's 14th arrondissement of Paris, 14th arrondissement. The cemetery is roughly 47 acres and is the second largest cemetery in Paris. The cemetery has over 35,00 ...

(8th division). In 1985, his son Henri Mouron published a study of his father's work in a book titled ''A.M. Cassandre''.

Typeface

These foundry types were produced by Deberny & Peignot from designs by Cassandre:

Notable works

* ''Nord Express'', 1925 * ''Etoile Du Nord'', 1927 * ''La Route Bleue'', 1929 * ''Chemin De Fer Du Nord'', 1929 * ''L’ Atlantique'', 1931 * ''Triplex'', 1930 * ''Dubonnet'', 1932 * ''Normandie'', 1935

References

Other sources * Robert K. Brown, Susan Reinhold: ''The poster art of A. M. Cassandre.'' - New York: Dutton, 1979 * Henri Mouron: ''A. M. Cassandre : affiches, arts graph., théâtre.'' - München: Schirmer/Mosel, 1985
published in English as ''Cassandre : Posters, Typography, Stage Designs'' - London: Thames and Hudson, 1986 ()

External links