At the turn of the 19thcentury, the artist Alphonse Mucha was at the height of his career. A fineartist, whose name is now synonymous with the art nouveau style,the CzechMucha came from anillustration background and became widely and commercially well-known through hisadvertisements for everything from chocolate to cigarettes to laundry detergent.Living inParis, Muchawas also celebrated for hisidealized female figuresthatwere often based onParisian film starsand glitterati,and his workincluded hisyearsstudying,drawing,and paintingfilm actress and icon, Sarah Bernhardt.His portraits of her were printed aslarge-scalepostersheralding his commercial workwhich took advantage of new advances in printing.In 1887, the invention of celluloid film paved the way for Mucha to become the first artist to workdirectly from photography.Thusly, his color palette was oftentherich,warm, pasteltonesofphotographs andheusedthese huesto create Mucha women with flowing hair that matched theflourish of his gorgeous lettering and typefaces.Within this range of color emergesasignatureeaude nilblue thatMucha usedto clothe the womenin lush drapery, illuminate the skies behind them,give them wings and surround them with wavesof water.Our newest addition to our core range ofEsterbookEstie’s celebrates the innovation of Mucha’swork andhisparticular shadesofblue, blended into a material that reflects the celluloid of penmaking past.IntroducingNouveau Bleu, the latestoffering that joins our other classic colors as a permanent partof the Estie lineup.