Stüf Stuff

Ad for Kosca pens, Italy 1951.

From the Epoca archives

Kalmine pain reliever ad, Italy 1951.

“against neuralgia(?), headaches, colds, flu, toothaches”

From the Epoca archives.

Cute overload, Italian 1950s style.

From the Epoca archives.

Handpainted billboard in Tel Aviv, Isreal (2008)
via Fontef Photolog

Cycles Gladiator. Circa 1895.
38 1/2x53 inches. Printed by G. Massias, Paris.

The following description is from Swann Galleries who put one of the few existing original posters up for auction in 2006. It attracted 15 bidders and sold for $26,000:

During the 1890s when bicycles were one of the most advertised products in the poster world, the fantastic concept that a bicycle was powerful enough to propel a rider into space was used surprisingly frequently (see Swann Auction #1945 lot 59, Swann Auction #1991 lot 41). This is the most spectacular of all the posters mixing science fiction with turn-of-the-century eroticism, showing naked, beautiful woman (one can’t help but wonder where the censors were when this project was proposed!) with extravagant red hair being pulled through the cosmos by her bicycle. The spokes sparkle like stars and two little wings on the bicyle pedals add to the kitschy charm and surrealist nature of the image. Although the poster is signed “LW” it is still considered anonymous, as the only possible LW is Lucein Weiluc, and this does not appear to be his work. Dodge p. 117, Voici p. 11.

A California winery has adopted the name and the art for its bottles (which were banned in Alabama for displaying “a person posed in an immoral or sensuous manner”):

Cycles Gladiator symbolizes a celebration of the freedom and happiness that pervaded Europe in the late 19th century—an era known as the Belle Epoque. This era marked many notable inventions and improvements to daily life, not the least of which was the modern bicycle or Le Bicycle Velocipede.

Started in Paris in 1891 by Alexandre Darracq (an eccentric, who would later become famous for manufacturing automobiles), Gladiator was one of the dozens of bicycle companies that saturated the market when the cycling craze boomed. The Golden Age of cycling reached its pinnacle in 1895—and that same year printer G. Massias unveiled one of the great Parisian advertising posters. Only four of these original posters exist today.

The famed artwork that once showcased the stylish Cycles Gladiator now graces the bottles of our classic wines from California’s Central Coast. The mythological image of the nymph riding her winged bicycle captures the grace and uninhibited beauty of our hillside vineyards.

AllPosters.com sells reproductions at sizes up to 60 x 44 in.