Executed much in the manner of Les Maîtres de l'Affiche, this rare and complete portfolio of 70 beautifully lithographed Ricordi posters reproduces the work of Italian master posterists in a more manageable size. Published with the same meticulous care and quality as the Maîtres series—which in some respects makes it even more rare and impressive seeing as it exhibits the work of a single publishing firm—the artists and works presented in the portfolio are astounding: Cappiello (4 posters—a pair for Mele, Livorno, and the tremendous Musica e Musicisti), Hohenstein (10 posters, including Monaco, Germania, Monte Carlo, and Tosca), Metlicovitz (15, including Fleurs de Mousse, Exposition Milan, and several Mele designs), Dudovich (7, with Mele being the primary representative), Franz Laskoff (10, including S. Petrus and Mele), and Mauzan (a pair of film posters). Other artists present in this prodigious assemblage include Achille Beltrame, Caldanzano, Cavaleri, Gallo, Adolfo de Karolis, Gian Malerba, Giovanni Mataloni, Aldo Mazza, Plinio Nomellini, Palanti, Enrico Sacchetti, Aleardo Terzi, and Aleardo Villa. It’s an absolute must-have for the Italian poster aficionado!
Ricordi, Milano
literature: PAI-XCIII, 409