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ART NOUVEAU
1890 - 1914
ART NOUVEAU,
French for "New Art" (pronounced New-Vo), spread throughout Europe and
major American cities from circa 1890 to World War I, when it fell out
of fashion. Appearing just before the Art Deco era it was, in many ways, a response to the Industrial
Revolution. Artists, seeing machines and mass production as an enemy of
art and design, turned to nature, fantasy, and curvilinear motifs to
express their rejection of industry. Art Nouveau artists were among the
first to create "art for art's sake" and its influence was found in
paintings, architecture, glass, textiles, furniture, silver, china,
jewelry, and others. Art Nouveau designers believed that all arts should
work in harmony to create a "total work of art". After World War I, the
Art Deco style took over and Art Nouveau was soon forgotten. However, it
remains one of the most imaginative and intriguing styles in the history
of art. After many years, it was discovered in the 1960's and helped
pave the way to many forms of modern art.
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Ironwork
with "Whiplash" curve |
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Art Nouveau has a
distinctive visual look. Dynamic, wavy, curved "whiplash" lines in
flowing rhythms like those found in Japanese prints characterize much of
Art Nouveau. The appearance of motion, movement and abstraction of the
natural world allowed for remarkable freedom. Natural forms could be
twisted, elongated, and curved to the spatial requirements of any
composition. Flowers, birds, dragonflies, spider webs, and especially
the female form were favorite motifs. The motifs became more and more
abstracted to the point where artists were no longer trying to copy
nature exactly, but rather create their own artful interpretation of it.
This distinction marks the difference between Art Nouveau and that which
came before it.
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Ironwork
gate with Web motif |
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"The Kiss" -
Gustav Klimt |
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Glasswork and
stained glass art achieved new prominence during the Art Nouveau period.
Louis
Comfort Tiffany (1848 - 1933),
was the greatest practitioner of the stained glass art form, and he
inspired a whole generation of artisans. Some of Tiffany's most
inventive designs were his metalwork lamps in which glass and bronze
were sculpted together to form objects of unbelievable fantasy. It is
these lamps that have become synonymous with his last name. The first
Tiffany Glass Company was incorporated on December 1, 1885 which in 1900
became Tiffany Studios. Since his death in January 1933, many have
followed in his footsteps to recreate high-quality reproductions of his
original glasswork designs.
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Tiffany
Wisteria lamp |
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Dragonfly
Table - Emile Galle |
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A major objective
of Art Nouveau was to create a sense of unity in all arts. Because of
this, many artists worked in several different fields, becoming
Renaissance men and women of their generation.
Emile Galle (1846
- 1904),
one of the most influential forces of the time studied art, botany,
philosophy, glassmaking, and furniture design.
Gustav Klimt
(1862 - 1918),
an Austrian symbolist painter and one of the best-known artists of the
period, works included paintings, murals, and sketches. His painting
"The Kiss" is among the most recognizable of that time. Artists like
Henry Van de Velde, Victor Horta, Joseph Olbrich, Jose Hoffman, and
other led the way in architecture creating designs and buildings with
all-encompassing artistic visions.
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Hotel Tassel
- Victor Horta |
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Today, in the
modern era, the Art Nouveau movement is often overshadowed by the Art
Deco period that followed. As to why the Art nouveau style came and went
so fast, much like a fad, is subject to debate. Unarguably though, the
effect of World War I on the world as a whole temporarily stifled many
conveniences of the time as rationing and world hardships came into
play. In addition, designing buildings in which every room, every
piece of furniture, and every detail had to be coordinated demanded an
enormous amount of time and money. In short, the architectural style was
very impractical and could not sustain itself for long. Art Nouveau
exploded on the European and American stage in a flurry and just as
quickly disappeared, but left behind some of the most remarkable works
of art. Many of the artists, including those most well know at the time,
remained active and did go on to participate in the Art Deco movement of
the 1920's and 1930's. However, the attempt to maintain beauty,
craftsmanship, and art in it's natural and abstracted states were never
quite captured again in the modern world of machines, mass production,
and industry.
Art
Nouveau Links -
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