ORSI. VIII Olympiad. Olympic Games Paris 1924. - Lot 164

ORSI. VIII Olympiad. Olympic Games Paris 1924. Lithographic poster. Phogor, Paris. Interlining (old interlining), fair condition: traces of median folds, very small lacks in the image, restored tears including a larger one in the lower part of the poster (18 cm), soiling, traces of humidity. 120.5 x 80 cm In this sale, we present the two posters chosen by the French Olympic Committee for the 1924 Paris Olympic Games. Bibliography: L'Olympisme par l'Affiche. 1896 - 1984. International Olympic Committee Lausanne, Switzerland. 1983. Page 26 and 27: "Of the 150 poster designs submitted, the French Olympic Committee selected two: Jean Droit's and Orsi's." The two posters take very different approaches. In Jean Droit's poster, a group of bare-chested athletes take the Olympic oath with their right arms raised and their heads turned to the right, presumably towards the grandstand, which cannot be seen. At their feet are the arms of the city of Paris, with the tricolour flag in the background. Orsi's poster, meanwhile, shows a lone athlete in the middle of a javelin throw, in front of a globe and a Parisian landscape featuring the Eiffel Tower and the Sacré Coeur, which also had its cross removed just a century ago... "The 1924 Summer Olympics, officially named the Games of the VIII Olympiad, were the seventh edition of the modern Olympic Games, and the first to be held under the name of the Summer Olympics (Paris, July 5-27), with the Winter Olympics taking place for the first time in Chamonix-Mont-Blanc. Following the 1900 edition in Paris, Pierre de Coubertin decided to organize the Olympic Games in France for the second time. Indeed, the first edition had been plagued by problems, and the 1900 Games were seen by some as a mere international competition. With a view to staging better Games, he wanted to prove to the world that Paris and France were capable of hosting the world's athletes in competition. After much discussion, Pierre de Coubertin obtained the IOC's satisfaction. It was during this same session that the 1924 Winter Olympic Games in Chamonix-Mont-Blanc were decided."