The Poster Art of A.M. Cassandre

The first retrospective of the work of A.M. Cassandre’s in this country since the Museum of Modern Art exhibition in 1936 will be on view at the Reinhold-Brown Gallery.
 
Born in Russia to French parents, Cassandre is regarded as the most influential and highly respected of all artists working in the area of commercial posters. His bold, arresting and ingeniously executed designs are outstanding examples of the influence of geometric abstraction on commercial art. Cassandre was the first commercial designer to integrate into his work elements of modern art movements such as Purism, Cubism, Surrealism, and photomontage.
 
The majority of Casssandre’s posters were made between 1923 and 1939. During this period they were an integral part of the urban landscape of Paris and other European cities. Today, with a growing appreciation and revival of interest in the art of the late 1920’s and 30’s, they are regarded as masterpieces of their kind. An entire generation of graphic designers has been profoundly influenced by him.
 
The Reinhold-Brown Gallery will display 22 classic posters and two preliminary studies. Among these are two of the rarest and most ingenious of all his works: “L’Intrans” (executed in 1925 for the Parisian newspaper); and “LMS-Best Way” (designed in 1928 for the London-Midland-Scottish Railway). Other well known works which will be shown include: “Dubo-Dubon-Dubonnet”; “Wagon-Bar” (both the poster and the original photo-montage); “L’Atlantique”; “Normandie”; “La Route Bleue”; “Triplex”; “Oiseau Bleu”; “Statendam”; and “Chemin de Fer du Nord”.
 
The book by Robert K. Brown and Susan Reinhold titled The Poster Art of A.M. Cassandre published by E.P. Dutton is available.