German Style & Fashion: Turn-of-the Century

In Germany at the start of the 20th century there was an explosion of creativity seen in all aspects of life. The fine arts, architecture, furniture design and fashion were all moving towards an exciting new look. This artistic movement, called art nouveau in France and Jugendstil in Germany (the name taken from one of the most influential lifestyle magazines of the era, Die Jugend), was a creative movement of modernity, finding inspiration from natures designs and the living world.\\

My interest in all things antiquarian, as always, leads to material related to my areas of speciality. Today's post illustrates two publications from Germany that show the influence of Jugendstil on art, illustration and book publishing.

DAS ALBUM. Published in Germany, circa 1902. A large format, bound volume of 12 issues with decorative binding. Das Album, similar in content to L'Album, published in Paris at the same time, was filled with beautiful illustrations in each issue, many full-page and in color. 

As was common at this time for publications appealing to a large audience (the turn-of-the-century is the birth of "pop-culture" magazines) Das Album focused its cutting edge style reflected in the growing interest of popular entertainments. Typical subject matter included the cabaret scene, music-hall shows, cafe concerts, "street festivals", the "karnival" (costume parties) and amusement parks. It appears that none of these activities would be complete without displays of women drinking and smoking and otherwise dressed seductively in public.

At first glance much of what we see from the worlds of German and French nightlife (read that as Berlin and Paris) seems quite marvelous with up swept hair-dos, large hats and elegant dresses and thanks to the can-can, hundreds of kicking legs in frou-frou lingerie. The high life! However much depicted at the time put a glossy veneer on activities that were marginally acceptable such as prostitution and the men who supported them. Looking closely at many of these illustrations are subtle depictions of prostitutes, usually attended by much older, distinguished looking gents. Wealthy mustachioed fellows, rarely without a bottle of champagne-on-ice at hand.

All that being said, this was an exceptional period, making art and illustration available to the average person via periodicals like Das Album and to a more affluent clientele via the Reznicek album which follows.

Title page, illustration by J.Wely

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Cover illustration by Widhopff

Unsigned cover illustration

Unsigned cover illustration

Full-page illustration by Gerbault

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UNTER VIER AUGEN (Private Eyes). F. von Reznicek Album. Published in Munich: Albert Langen Verlag, 1908. Large format hardcover, beautifully printed in full-color. All illustrations full-page.

Reznicek's illustrations in some ways epitomize the "high" and "low" of German society at the turn-of-the-century. On the one hand are the incredibly elegant women and men in gowns and formal clothes and on the other the archetypal images of older men with seductive younger women in their bed chambers. There is no doubt that within these beautifully mannered scenes of women undressing from copious layers of undergarments and corsets, that these are working girls, prostitutes, preparing to engage their clients.

Stamped, partially embossed, hardcover binding printed in color

Title page

The next five scans are full-page illustrations from Unter vier Augen

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Grundworth 1920s Parisian Photographe: Derriere Lover

 

The Parisian world of clandestine, erotic photography has many twists and turns and more than a few "men of mystery" working behind the camera. Among their ranks is the photographer known only as Grundworth. Although there is much evidence of his contributions to the genre during 1920s, unabashedly displaying his fetish for full figured women, particularly their marvelous round asses, nothing is known about him.

He also admired silk stocking'ed legs, garters, garter belts, panties, frou-frou slips and lingerie; as well as outdoor exhibitionists and maids and submissive mistresses!! Here is a miscellany of postcard size images.

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Chinese Nudes: EDLE NACKTHEIT IN CHINA 1928

Another of the great photography books on the body, the female nude, is Heinz von Perckhammer's Edle Nacktheit in China ~ Kunstlerische Aktaufnahmen with 32 fine gravures, published in Berlin,1928. Perckhammer, who travelled to Asia, Southern China and Macao in the late 1920s, posed and photographed prostitutes in brothels in a pictorialist, soft-focus style. One of the most beautiful books of the period. My most recent copy of the book was the most uncommon, a hard cover edition with yellow tie-binding and yellow and blue covers + the dust jacket.

Click any image to enlarge

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PROSTITUTION French Postcards 1900

A post earlier this week looked at the humor magazine L'Amour and its focus on prostitution at the turn-of-the-century. France's obsessive interest in prostitution, in its own way, reveals much about French society. Without any desire or need to be critical, here is another aspect of the circa 1900 French view of prostitution, prostitutes and their clients, as seen on postcards. Most of the captions are turn-of-the-century, difficult to decipher plays on words. Nonetheless, the sexual intentions are quite clear. All of these postcards, except the two at the end, are quite rare.

At the top and the three postcards above are from the series Curiosites Parisiennes. Parisian monuments and iconographic buildings as part of the visual and verbal gag.

Another series focused on prostitution Le Sourire (above and below); 
illustration signed Mille.

Beautifully printed etching, part of a series by the artist Fredillo

Dans La Monde (In the World) one postcard from a rarely seen, sexually explicit series.  Note: even through this is a postcard (standard paper-weight and size) it does not have a postcard back and was not meant, nor was it legal for mailing.

Three cards above are typical of an almost cavalier attitudes 
towards the profession and women.

Patrons of the arts

The two above and the one below published by another of the period 

illustrated humor magazines Le Frou-Frou.

An atypical Premiere Avril (April First) postcard of a prostitute at the end of the day with her hair piece and falsies removed ~ April Fool!

And when the unwanted happens...call the "doctor"

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L'AMOUR Turn-of-the-Century French Magazine 1900

Exceptional art nouveau era Parisian magazine, L'Amour. A selection of hand-tinted covers, circa 1902. Humorous illustrations depicting life, love and the pursuit of les femmes disponible ~ prostitutes and prostitution.

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