Toulouse-Lautrec and the charm of the Belle Époque on display in Florence

From September 27 to February 22, 2026, the Museo degli Innocenti brings late 19th-century Paris to life.

From September 27, 2025, to February 22, 2026, the Museo degli Innocenti in Florence will host the major exhibition “Toulouse-Lautrec. A Journey into Belle Époque Paris.” A unique itinerary that transports visitors to the heart of the French capital between the late 19th and early 20th century, among dazzling lights, lively cafés, artistic innovation, and the rise of modern poster art.

The Belle Époque was a time of progress and joie de vivre, marked by the first electric lights, bustling boulevards, and cafés filled with artists, dancers, and writers. It was in this vibrant cultural atmosphere that Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec (1864–1901) rose to fame. Painter, illustrator, and innovator, Lautrec captured the bohemian nightlife of Montmartre with both irony and depth. A regular at the Moulin Rouge and café-concerts, he transformed the Parisian night into art. His iconic lithographic posters not only revolutionized advertising but also became lasting visual symbols of the Belle Époque.

©Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, Jane Avril

Thanks to an exceptional loan from the Wolfgang Krohn Collection in Hamburg and in collaboration with the Toulouse-Lautrec Museum in Albi, the exhibition brings together some of the artist’s most celebrated works: color lithographs such as Jane Avril (1893); advertising posters including Troupe de Mademoiselle Églantine (1896) and Aristide Bruant in His Cabaret (1893); drawings, promotional graphics, and illustrations for magazines such as La Revue blanche (1895).

The exhibition also features works by other great figures of the Belle Époque and Art Nouveau, including: the enchanting female portraits of Alphonse Mucha; the vibrant posters of Jules Chéret, considered the pioneer of modern advertising; the refined atmospheres of Georges de Feure alongside works by Frédéric-Auguste Cazals, Paul Berthon, and other masters who elevated graphic art into high art.

Beyond artworks, the exhibition includes period photographs, videos, and original furnishings, offering visitors an immersive journey into Paris between 1880 and 1900—a cosmopolitan, vibrant city where technology, entertainment, and artistic freedom laid the foundations of modernity.

The exhibition also explores the international diffusion of the Liberty style: known as Art Nouveau in France, Jugendstil in Germany, Modern Style in England, Modernismo in Spain, and Tiffany in the United States.