Description
This exceptional early 1890s William Bradley lithograph represents one of the rarest commissions in American Art Nouveau—a museum-quality original created when Bradley was establishing himself as the nation’s premier industrial designer. One of only approximately twenty pieces Bradley created for Ault & Wiborg Company, this poster stands as a masterwork of color lithography innovation, featuring a sophisticated palette of lavender, purple, orange, dark green, vermilion, and black that visually demonstrated the revolutionary ink pigments the company manufactured.
Printing ink manufacturers of this era understood a powerful truth: showing was more effective than telling. Instead of text-heavy trade advertisements, companies like Ault & Wiborg commissioned America’s finest artists to create vibrant color lithographs that would appear exclusively in printing industry publications. These posters served dual purposes—they showcased the brilliant, fast-drying, non-bleeding inks the company had pioneered through coal-tar dyes and chemical innovation, while elevating the aesthetic standards of industrial communication itself. Only collectors and printing professionals ever saw these pieces; they were never distributed to the general public, making them extraordinarily scarce today.
This original measures 8.25″ x 12″ and remains in exceptional mint condition, professionally linen-backed and museum-matted with acid-free conservation materials—ready to frame and display. Bradley’s skill in balancing commercial purpose with fine art aesthetics has never been more evident. Finding early Bradley work in this quality is increasingly rare; this represents a critical piece for serious collectors of vintage printing history, American Art Nouveau, and design innovation.
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