Johann von Stein 1896–1965 Rotterdamsche Lloyd vintage poster
Caption Brief: A sleek Art Deco design frames the steamship Baloeran of the Rotterdam Lloyd Line, a Dutch shipping company that sailed worldwide, but placed its primary focus on the Dutch East Indies and the Far East. Launched in 1930, the Baloeran was captured by the Germans in Rotterdam a decade later. Converted to a hospital ship and renamed Strassburg, she would be beached near Ijmuiden, North Holland, after being mined, where the wreck would be destroyed by British torpedo boats. A rather ignoble end for such a majestic-looking liner. Stein achieved a solid reputation with his meticulously crafted posters for the Nederlandse Rotogravure Maatschappij, a renowned printer based in Leiden. His clear lines and geometric neatness come from the same Art Deco font of inspiration as Cassandre’s designs of the 1930s. This is the Dutch-language variant of the design.
1931
28⅝ h × 18 w in (73 × 46 cm)
Ned. Rotogravure, Leiden
Provenance: Collection of William Crouse
Exhibited: Art Deco: The Golden Age of Illustration, 31 August 2025 - 29 March 2026, Sarasota Art Museum, Florida
Condition: Cond B+: with repaired losses, creases, cracking, tears, and double lining. Work has not been examined out of frame but is fully visible. Framed behind acrylic measuring 32.5 × 21.625 inches.
Literature: The Art Deco Poster, Crouse, p. 231; PAI-XLV, 561 (var)
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Caption Brief: A sleek Art Deco design frames the steamship Baloeran of the Rotterdam Lloyd Line, a Dutch shipping company that sailed worldwide, but placed its primary focus on the Dutch East Indies and the Far East. Launched in 1930, the Baloeran was captured by the Germans in Rotterdam a decade later. Converted to a hospital ship and renamed Strassburg, she would be beached near Ijmuiden, North Holland, after being mined, where the wreck would be destroyed by British torpedo boats. A rather ignoble end for such a majestic-looking liner. Stein achieved a solid reputation with his meticulously crafted posters for the Nederlandse Rotogravure Maatschappij, a renowned printer based in Leiden. His clear lines and geometric neatness come from the same Art Deco font of inspiration as Cassandre’s designs of the 1930s. This is the Dutch-language variant of the design.
1931
28⅝ h × 18 w in (73 × 46 cm)
Ned. Rotogravure, Leiden
Provenance: Collection of William Crouse
Exhibited: Art Deco: The Golden Age of Illustration, 31 August 2025 - 29 March 2026, Sarasota Art Museum, Florida
Condition: Cond B+: with repaired losses, creases, cracking, tears, and double lining. Work has not been examined out of frame but is fully visible. Framed behind acrylic measuring 32.5 × 21.625 inches.
Literature: The Art Deco Poster, Crouse, p. 231; PAI-XLV, 561 (var)