{"id":273,"date":"2026-10-16T19:26:00","date_gmt":"2026-10-16T17:26:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rollingposters.com\/roadbook\/?p=273"},"modified":"2026-10-14T15:41:40","modified_gmt":"2026-10-14T13:41:40","slug":"steinlen-chat-noir-poster","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rollingposters.com\/roadbook\/en\/poster-art\/steinlen-chat-noir-poster\/","title":{"rendered":"Steinlen’s Le Chat Noir: the story of a cult poster"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The Tourn\u00e9e du Chat Noir<\/strong> poster is a lithograph by Th\u00e9ophile-Alexandre Steinlen, printed in 1896 to announce the tour of the troupe of Rodolphe Salis’s Montmartre cabaret. Its large seated black cat, with a red halo and yellow eyes, has become one of the most reproduced images of the Belle \u00c9poque.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The poster, detail by detail<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\"Tourn\u00e9e
Th\u00e9ophile-Alexandre Steinlen, \u00ab\u00a0Tourn\u00e9e du Chat Noir de Rodolphe Salis\u00a0\u00bb, 1896. Public domain (source<\/a>)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
Element<\/th>What you see<\/th>What it says<\/th><\/tr><\/thead>
The cat<\/td>A seated black cat, drawn in a flat shape outlined in gold<\/td>The cabaret’s emblem, readable from across the street<\/td><\/tr>
The halo<\/td>An ornate red circle behind its head, like an icon<\/td>Often read as an ironic wink: the mascot of bohemian Montmartre becomes a saint<\/td><\/tr>
The gaze<\/td>Yellow almond eyes staring at the passer-by<\/td>A face-to-face that stops you in your tracks<\/td><\/tr>
The lettering<\/td>Hand-drawn letters in red and black<\/td>The text is part of the picture<\/td><\/tr>
The band<\/td>A flat red band the cat sits on, with the name of Rodolphe Salis<\/td>The cabaret owner, in large letters, like a star<\/td><\/tr>
\u00ab\u00a0Prochainement\u00a0\u00bb<\/td>A discreet word in the top right corner, meaning \u00ab\u00a0coming soon\u00a0\u00bb<\/td>The poster announces an upcoming tour<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The poster was printed in lithography by the Charles Verneau printing house, whose name appears in small letters on the side. There are two versions, one reading \u00ab\u00a0de Rodolphe Salis\u00a0\u00bb (by Rodolphe Salis), the other \u00ab\u00a0avec Rodolphe Salis\u00a0\u00bb (with Rodolphe Salis).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Chat Noir, a Montmartre cabaret<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Le Chat Noir (The Black Cat) opened on 18 November 1881 at 84 boulevard de Rochechouart, at the foot of the Montmartre hill. Its founder, Rodolphe Salis, had the idea of combining art and a drinking establishment. The name is said to come from a stray black cat found on the pavement during the building work. Poets, songwriters and painters flocked there, and Salis installed a piano, a first for a cabaret: this is where cabaret song was born.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Date<\/th>What happened<\/th><\/tr><\/thead>
November 1881<\/td>Rodolphe Salis opens the Chat Noir at 84 boulevard de Rochechouart<\/td><\/tr>
1882<\/td>Launch of the weekly magazine Le Chat Noir, published until 1895<\/td><\/tr>
June 1885<\/td>The cabaret moves to a three-storey building at 12 rue de Laval (now rue Victor-Mass\u00e9)<\/td><\/tr>
1896<\/td>Steinlen designs the poster for the Tourn\u00e9e du Chat Noir<\/td><\/tr>
19 March 1897<\/td>Rodolphe Salis dies: the cabaret closes shortly afterwards<\/td><\/tr>
1907<\/td>A new Chat Noir opens at 68 boulevard de Clichy<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

On rue de Laval, Salis and the artist Henri Rivi\u00e8re created a colour shadow theatre that made the place famous. Aristide Bruant, Alphonse Allais, Erik Satie, Claude Debussy and Paul Verlaine were regulars, as was Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Steinlen, the artist of cats<\/h2>\n\n\n\n