Alphonse Mucha was a broke Czech illustrator in Paris when a last-minute poster for the actress Sarah Bernhardt made him famous overnight. His flowing, flower-framed women came to define Art Nouveau.
He later spent years painting the Slav Epic, 20 huge canvases for his people. In 1939 he was arrested and interrogated by the Gestapo, and he died soon after. His beauty outlasted them.
Doomscroll Buster is a series of short videos about people who faced dark times and made beauty anyway. Watch them all in the Doomscroll Buster section at pastpassport.com.