Short object reading
Object note
This page stays close to the sheet itself: composition, historical setting, and the work's place in the archive.
What the work is
Chocolat Idéal is an advertising poster for powdered chocolate. The lettering on the sheet names the Compagnie Française des Chocolats et des Thés as the advertiser and F. Champenois of Paris as the printer. Artvee dates it “before 1897”, so we give no more precise date here.
What to look at
A woman in a yellow gown carries a tray of steaming cups while two children reach up to her, one of them breaking into a dance. An arch frames the scene under the large title, with “en Poudre Soluble” on the right. At the bottom are the chocolate boxes, the price of six cups at 0.90 and the line “Donne p’tit’ maman!”.
In deep zoom
Move in on the hair, the folds of the gown and the curls of steam: they show the lithographic drawing set beside flat areas of colour. Mucha’s signature is at lower right and the Champenois imprint at lower left.
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