Wengen Vintage Travel Poster Suisse Switzerland Schweiz – Otto Ernst – 1920
The artist Otto Ernst captured an idyllic image of the Swiss holiday resort of Wengen in this beautiful vintage travel poster. Wengen lies on a sunny sheltered terrace at the foot of the Jungfrau mountain, 400 meters above the Lauterbrunnen Valley at an altitude of 1274 meters. For over 600 years the tiny village was, and still is, an Alpine farming village that until the end of the 19th century was little known about, even by the Swiss.
This began to change with the introduction of the Wengernalpbahn, (Wengernalp Railway), to the rural village in 1893. Towards the end of the 19th century, the railway was bringing flocks of rich, mainly British and European aristocrats to the village on their Grand Tours of Europe.
As can be seen in Ernst’s poster image, Wengen was still a small, rural village scattered with timber chalets when this poster was created in 1920. It had, however, already become a popular summer resort that boasted of at least four hotels, including the region’s first guesthouse, the Hotel Alpenrose, the Bellevue Wengenand the Regina.
Otto Ernst’s Wengen poster depicts hotel guests sitting high up on a hill in the Bernese Oberland. The tourists are impeccably dressed. The gentleman is suited and booted and the two ladies are wearing highly fashionable knee-length dresses and the essential snug-fitting cloche hat that was all the rage in the 1920s. The woman in the red dress and hat is holding a tennis racquet which suggests the trio are sitting in the grounds of one of the resort’s early hotels.
The three are portrayed gazing out over the spectacular views of the Lauterbrunnen valley. Absorbing the views across the Bernese andscape to one of the three mountains that surround the village, the Jungfrau, Mönch, or Eiger mountain. The artist has captured the intense beauty of the scenery, and the wonder that the three people feel as they take it all in. It’s a stunning work that reminds us of the simple pleasure of enjoying a breathtaking view.
Our posters are carefully and professionally created from vintage originals. Whilst great care is taken in the production of these posters, we also try to maintain a vintage feel, so there may be small imperfections, fold marks, scuffs, tears, or marks that were part of the original poster master. If these do appear they should be visible on the larger views of the item on this listing. The originals of many of the posters we offer can cost many thousands of pounds, so whilst these posters look great, especially framed and mounted on a wall, they are intended as fun, affordable reproductions and not intended fine art prints.
The 50x70cm version has been specially produced to be used in conjunction with Ikea’s 50x70cm Ribba picture frame which currently retails for around £15. So you can bag a bargain of print and frame for a great price.
