Which French painter designed the iconic Art Nouveau poster for the Moulin Rouge featuring La Goulue?

The French painter who designed the iconic Art Nouveau poster for the Moulin Rouge featuring La Goulue was Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec.

Created in 1891, the colour lithograph advertised the newly opened Moulin Rouge and its famous dancers La Goulue and Valentin le Désossé. Toulouse-Lautrec was only 27, but the poster’s dramatic silhouettes, cropped figures and bold lettering immediately distinguished it from conventional, text-heavy advertising.

The Moulin Rouge had opened in Montmartre in 1889. La Goulue—born Louise Weber—was one of its celebrated cancan performers, while Valentin was known for his remarkable flexibility. The poster reportedly circulated in roughly 3,000 copies, though many were destroyed or removed from walls by collectors.

Jules Chéret is an easy mix-up because he was another major French poster artist and also designed Moulin Rouge advertising. Édouard Manet and Pierre-Auguste Renoir were important painters, but neither created this famous La Goulue poster.