Raluca Petre Art Nouveau, Alphonse Mucha and the Mass Visibility of Culture This paper discusses the link between the concepts of mass culture, Art Nouveau and advertizing in the context of the western world with a special emphasis on Paris, fin-de-siècle. This phenomenon is represented by the artist Alphonse Mucha, through his posters, jewelry, public space decorations and paintings. The article focuses on posters and advertisements, as a blending of mass and formal art, designed by representatives of the Art Nouveau and displayed in public spaces. Key words: mass communication, access to art, Art Nouveau, Alphonse Mucha, advertizing 1. Introduction In this paper I attempt to explore some phenomena that emerged and developed by the end of the nineteenth century, that are interconnected and that can explain some of the cultural aspects of the time. I will touch upon the concepts of mass culture, Art Nouveau and advertising in the context of western world with a special emphasis on Paris, fin-de- siècle. The link between these large developments is in my paper the figure of the artist Alphonse Mucha, whose trajectory I will draw in the pages to follow and whose art I will try to understand, linking art and everyday life in its emerging shape of culture that reaches the masses as well. All the concepts to be used in the present paper could be problematized as single subjects, the phenomenon or Art Nouveau being large enough to cover plenty of pages. At the same time, advertising is an institution of modernity that reshapes the functioning of press and the circulation of goods in the market. One of its early species in Europe, the poster was widespread in Europe in the flourishing epoch of Art Nouveau and had original representatives in Europe and the United States. It can be considered a hybrid form of art, caricature, decoration and promotion, according to the artists that were using it, as well as to its purpose and reach. The restricted space of this paper does not allow for elaborate discussions of each of the above-mentioned basic concepts. Rather, I will try to define them briefly and to introduce them in their diachronic dimension as background for understanding the works of the selected figure that would link the basic concepts. The concept of ‘mass’ and of ‘mass culture’ have been richly documented by the authors dealing with popular culture even if in its later manifestations, starting with the second half of the twentieth century. In this paper