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With the development of color lithography in the 1800s, the poster began to be used increasingly as a means of advertisement. Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, one of the leading poster artists of his day, started the trend with his 1891 poster for the Moulin Rouge. With a leg-kicking dancer and a top-hatted gentleman, his Moulin Rouge poster became an overnight sensation, and remains one of the most popular vintage posters. Moreover, Toulouse-Lautrec's work elevated the status of the poster to fine art.

Coca Cola

Unfortunately, his death in 1901 and the abandonment of poster art by many of his contemporaries, left a void in the medium - a void that would eventually be filled by artists such as Leonetto Cappiello.

A young Italian caricaturist,

Nice

Cappiello arrived in Paris in 1898. He focused on creating one simple image, often humorous or bizarre, which would immediately capture the viewer's attention and imagination on a busy boulevard. His 1906 Maurin Quina absinthe poster, with a mischievous green devil on a black background and simple block lettering, marked the maturation of a style that would dominate Parisian poster art until Alphonse Cassandre's first Art Deco poster in 1923.

This ability to create a brand identity established Cappiello as the father of modern advertising, and has left us with a series of memorable vintage posters.