A charming lithographic Christmas card design by Dutch artist Theo van Hoytema, featuring ten geese in a rhythmic, decorative arrangement.

Theo van Hoytema, a Dutch artist known for his lithographic work and focus on natural history, produced this Christmas card design around the turn of the twentieth century. The composition features ten geese arranged in a vertical, rhythmic formation, moving downwards across the frame. The artist employs a soft, granular texture characteristic of lithography, allowing for subtle tonal variations in the feathers and the surrounding marshy environment.

The text, integrated into the design, reads 'Coming to wish you a happy Xmas'. The lettering is hand-drawn, reflecting the Art Nouveau interest in typography as a decorative element. Van Hoytema often depicted birds and animals in his work, showing a keen observation of their posture and movement. His approach avoids excessive detail, opting instead for a simplified, graphic representation that suits the medium of a printed greeting card.

This piece demonstrates the artist's ability to balance negative space with the central subject matter. The geese are rendered with a light touch, their forms emerging from the paper surface through delicate shading. The overall effect is one of quiet, seasonal charm, typical of the period's graphic design. Van Hoytema's work in this genre remains a clear example of the Dutch contribution to the international Art Nouveau style, where natural forms were adapted for commercial and decorative purposes. The print captures a sense of gentle motion, as the geese appear to descend through the space, creating a visual narrative that guides the viewer's eye from the top of the card to the bottom. It is a modest yet effective example of early twentieth-century graphic illustration, showing how artists of the time applied their skills to everyday objects.