◇ The Levitation of Princess Karnac

As a child, Howard Thurston practiced sleight of hand in secret, though his mother viewed the craft as the devil’s work and sent him away to undertake Bible studies. His trajectory was permanently altered after witnessing a performance by Alexander Herrmann, leading Thurston to abandon his theological studies for a career in stagecraft. 

The litho captures the theatrical illusion known as the "Levitation of Princess Karnac." The composition pulses with impossibility, depicting a woman drifting weightlessly across a stage while a ring is passed over her body to prove the absence of wires. With its rich interplay of deep teals, burnt oranges, and the stark black of the magician’s evening dress, the print evokes the specific brand of mystery that defined early 20th-century American variety theater.

Why We Picked It
The artwork is a study in forced perspective and narrative sequencing, showing the stages of levitation in a single, fluid frame. The high-contrast lighting, specifically the warm glow of the footlights hitting the mahogany-red stairs creates a dramatic focal point against the cooler, atmospheric background. The ethereal floating white silks  balances the rigid, formal posture of Howard Thurston, making it a definitive example of stone lithography’s ability to render both sharp detail and soft gradients.

Notable Context
Created during a period when spiritualism and stage magic were at their cultural zenith, this poster reflects the public's fascination with the "uncanny" during the Second Industrial Revolution. As cinema began to emerge, magicians like Thurston had to scale their spectacles to maintain their status as the premier form of mass entertainment. This specific illusion was a point of intense rivalry; Thurston inherited it from Harry Kellar, who had famously "borrowed" the secret from British inventor John Nevil Maskelyne. The imagery speaks to a globalized curiosity, often blending Western stagecraft with orientalist themes, an aesthetic common in the Vaudeville circuit as audiences sought escapism from the urban density of the early 1900s.

About the Publisher
The Otis Lithograph Co. of Cleveland, Ohio, was one of the most prestigious printers for the entertainment industry in the early 20th century. Known for their mastery of multi-color stone lithography, they specialized in large-format circus and magic posters that could withstand the weather when pasted on city walls. Their work is characterized by a "velvety" texture and deep color saturation that modern digital printing struggles to replicate. Otis Litho was instrumental in defining the visual language of American spectacle, turning ephemeral advertisements into enduring artifacts of graphic design history.