Vintage Art Nouveau Black Cat Square Paper Coaster

Tournee du Chat Noir (Tour of the Black Cat) by Theophile Steinlen, color lithograph print on paper, 1896, is a vintage fine art poster advertising the famous Paris cabaret club and cafe, Le Chat Noir. A stylish silhouette drawing of a cat with piercing yellow eyes stares at the viewer with a halo of lettering behind his head. This iconic image is an excellent example of the Art Nouveau movement that emerged from France in the 19th century. Theophile Steinlen (1859-1923) was a painter, printmaker, and illustrator active in the Art Nouveau movement in late 19th century Paris. Born in Switzerland, Steinlen moved to France to pursue a career as a designer and lived in the famous artist quarter of Paris, Montmartre. Steinlen befriended the artists at the cabaret Le Chat Noir, a center of Parisian nightlife, and created posters and advertisements for the owner, Aristide Bruant. Steinlen produced many famous examples of Art Nouveau poster art alongside other prominent artists, illustrators and Impressionist painters. Steinlen painted street scenes of life in Paris influenced by Impressionism, and specialized in magazine illustration and poster prints until the end of his life.