Alan and Cyane's holiday greeting card to left.
It is based on the poster shown below, which was put up to auction at Swann Galleries in New York in December.
The poster to right is by Josef Hoffmann and was done for the Wiener Werkstatte workshop in Vienna around 1905. The colony of artists had as its objective 'the fabrication of exquisitely wrought and wonderfully designed everyday objects. Envisioned as a close collaboration of artisans and craftsmen that would champion handmade work over machine-made mass-produced items."
The poster below was one of our favorites at the Swann Gallery sale. http://www.swanngalleries.com/3dcat/2336
The Beit Company was started by Ferdinand Beit Sr (1817-1870), a Hamburg Germany chemist, entrepreneur and import-exporter from a Jewish family. He started a number of businesses, including fertilizer, paints and book and stone inks. His son Ferdinand Beit Jr (1858-1928) carried on the business; this poster is from 1901. Ferdinand Beit Jr was also active in local politics on the left and working against anti-Semitism. This advertising poster is interesting as the colors are those of the German flag and the lady is looking to the left!
