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2023-12-15

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This dissertation examines artworks by Adolphe Willette and Théophile-Alexandre Steinlen in fin-de-siècle Montmartre, a neighborhood in Paris. Both artists were associated with the Chat Noir cabaret and its eponymous journal. They were hired to decorate the interior space of the cabaret with paintings and, in the case of Willette, stained glass. These were artworks that reflected and helped shape the environments inside spaces that cultivated avant-garde ideas about culture and politics. Following their work with the cabaret, both artists worked in the streets of Montmartre as well. Steinlen became a well-regarded poster artist and Willette created a parade to celebrate and raise money for the artists of Montmartre through moments of media experimentation that expanded their reach to more bigger publics. Through their bold use of media – large-scale paintings, lithographic prints, stained glass, and performance – Willette and Steinlen discovered new ways to reach audiences that eschewed traditional exhibition strategies. Through their works, they participated in dialogues that promoted their shared Bohemian ideologies of anti-capitalism, social justice, and anarchism. Both artists also imbued their work with historical references that aligned with their messaging. Willette turned to Medieval France for his brand of idyllic nationalistic nostalgia, and Steinlen looked to revolutionary history for his. Nostalgia, media, and democratic access will be key themes in a dissertation that illuminates a set of understudied works for and around the cabarets of Montmartre.

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Montmartre, Adolphe Willette, Théophile-Alexandre Steinlen, Cabarets, Fin-de-siècle

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