November Issue of Harper's Bazaar

Technique(s): Gouache Painting

Designer Overview
Erté (Romain de Tirtoff)

November 1892 - April 1990

Russia

At age nineteen, Romain de Tirtoff left behind the family pressure of becoming an officer in the Imperial Russian Navy to pursue his interests as an artist. After catching the attention of famous couturier, Paul Poiret, his sketches turned into a job as a designer and his artist name “Erté” was born. Erté went on to designing and styling several clothing pieces for different brands, costumes, and theatre sets prior to World War I. 

After 1915, Erté traveled to the United States and found great success through his ink and gouache paint illustrations for the famous Harper’s Bazaar women’s magazine. In his inspiration of Japanese woodblock prints, Erté’s subjects featured a weightless, glamorous woman excentuated by straight lines and vibrant flat colors. With Harper’s Bazaar, Erté created well over two hundred cover illustrations for the magazine. Erté became celebrated as the “Father of Art Deco.”