Famous Finnish Automobile Advertisement by Akseli Gallen-Kallela Leads Vintage Posters & Graphic Design Auction by Swann Auction Galleries

An edition of one of the most famous Finnish advertisements, titled Bil-Bol, is coming to auction with Swann Auction Galleries. The title Bil-Bol in Swedish translates as “car company.” It is a poster created in 1907 by Akseli Gallen-Kallela (1865 – 1931) for an automobile retailer. This poster will lead the upcoming Vintage Posters & Graphic Design Auction. The artist behind the famous image was Akseli Gallen-Kallela, a Finnish painter considered an essential aspect of the Finnish national identity. He is best known for his illustrations of the Finnish national epic Kalevala. The most likely person to have commissioned the poster was Swedish Baron Carl Cederström. He founded Sweden’s first car company (and taxi service) in Stockholm, Bil-Aktibolaget, whose name was trademarked as Bil-Bol. Furthermore, he exhibited his cars in Stockholm’s May 1907 car exposition. 

On the cover of issue one of L’Estampe Originale, Jane Avril stands in the Ancourt & Cie. printing shop, while the printer is hard at work behind her. L’Estampe Originale was a French periodical of original prints, containing prints by a distinguished group of artists like Paul Gauguin, Pierre-Auguste Renoir, Auguste Rodin, and Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec. The subject on the cover issue is dancer Jane Avril, one of Toulouse-Lautrec’s muses. Lautrec (1864 – 1901) was a French painter, printmaker, caricaturist, and illustrator. His most famous works are depictions of the Moulin Rouge and its patrons. He immersed himself in the colorful and theatrical life of Paris in the late 19th century. He produced provocative images where the subjects have personalities and are diversely true to their nature. Visit Swann Auction Galleries to find the listed items and register to place a bid.