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"I started
work in the graphic medium rather late in life. I think that graphics
is a form of expression that is very close to my heart because it was
the medium with which I made my reappearance in the broad,
international world of art."
 — Erté
The
designs created by Erté during his long and
illustrious life influenced not only the world of theatre, film and
fashion, but an entire art movement as well. The genius of the artist
is evidenced by an enormous body of work that is considered among the
most influential and unique of the 20th century.
Erté—Romain
de Tirtoff—was born in Russia
in 1892, and died at age 97 in 1990. His legendary career spanned
nearly the entire length of his life. In 1912, Erté
moved to Paris
and his unique talent was immediately recognized by the city’s
most established couturiers. In 1915, he began an association with
Harper’s Bazaar by designing covers of each of their magazines
for the next 22 years. The influence of his work as a result of the
high visibility of this periodical influenced an entire art movement
that was to become known as “Art Deco”.
Throughout
this period, the artist also created original costume and fashion
designs for many of the era’s most renowned screen actresses,
including Joan Crawford, Lillian Gish, Marion Davies, Anna Pavlova, Norma Shearer and others. His creations
for the stage included extravagent designs
for productions at such venues as New York’s
Radio City
Music Hall, the Casino de
Paris and the Paris
Opera, as well as for the Folies-Bergères
and George White’s Scandals.
 At
the age of 75, Erté was encouraged to
embark on a new career and began to recreate the remarkable designs
of his youth in bronze and serigraphy. The Art Deco movement was
hence reborn. A lifetime of international success and recognition has
ensured this unique artist's place in the annals of art history, and
his original designs grace the permanent collections of prestigious
museums throughout the world including New York’s
Metropolitan Museum of Art, Museum
of Modern Art, the
Smithsonian Institution and London’s
Victoria & Albert Museum.
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