Pétrole Stella Advertisement Poster by Henri Gray, 1897

After the Industrial Revolution changed the way products were manufactured, artists felt the need to compete with mass production and show the quality and creativeness of their work. This fundamentally changed advertising to be visually appealing and eye-catching in a nontraditional way, oftentimes visually expressing the art movement's desire for new ideas and the need to break traditions. This poster by Henri Gray advertising Stella lamp oil, showing nude nymphs and a cherub being blinded by the magnificent light, is an example of how advertisements focused not on the actual product but on designs that could be considered fine art. Women were most often the subjects or muses for these posters, adding to the organic, fluid nature of the Art Nouveau style and helping sell a new lifestyle.

https://vmfa.museum/exhibitions/exhibitions/art-advertisement-art-nouveau-posters-late-19th-century/

https://artsandculture.google.com/story/art-for-the-street-art-nouveau-posters/4ALC1IwryUklLg