Le Pater – Alphonse Mucha’s Symbolist Masterpiece and the Lineage of Mysticism
Le Pater: Alphonse Mucha’s Symbolist Masterpiece and the Lineage of Mysticism / with text by Thomas Negovan / 235-page paperback, 9 x 12 inches, color printing, published by Century Guild
***
We are excited to announce the new paperback edition of Le Pater: Alphonse Mucha’s Symbolist Masterpiece and the Lineage of Mysticism, featuring a new introduction from legendary author Michael Moorcock, plus 16 additional pages of previously unpublished material!
In 1899 Alphonse Mucha created an intensely personal series of occult-themed artworks as a love letter to the close of the century and a message of hope to the future.
This mystical and non-denominational exploration, titled Le Pater, was both praised and reviled by Mucha’s contemporaries as his most controversial and meaningful work.
Published in an edition of 510 copies on December 20, 1899, Mucha called his visionary interpretation of the Lord’s Prayer “the thing I have put my soul into.” Now, 120 years later, Le Pater is celebrated as his rarest and most powerful creation.
Le Pater: Alphonse Mucha’s Symbolist Masterpiece and the Lineage of Mysticism offers an unprecedented view of Alphonse Mucha’s Le Pater in a beautiful and dramatic presentation of ultra-clear, high resolution images captured directly from the original 1899 artworks.
Featuring a thorough historical narrative outlining mystical symbolism from Albrecht Dürer and Wiliam Blake to the 19th century occult artworks of the Salon Rose+Croix, the artworks and theories of Jacob Böhme, Robert Fludd, and the Invisible College, and the codings of sacred geometry and Hermeticism, author Thomas Negovan provides readers with the language necessary to interpret the symbols and imagery of Alphonse Mucha’s artworks.
With photographs from private collections that have never before been printed, rare historical artifacts, mystical artworks, and Mucha’s original sketches and theories, Le Pater: Alphonse Mucha’s Symbolist Masterpiece and the Lineage of Mysticism is a beautiful tribute to the artist who defined the Art Nouveau movement and a necessary addition to every art book collection.
