A paper for an art history course on architectural styles.
Scholarly Research: Where Are We, and How Did We Get Here?
Many people observing contemporary art are tangentially aware of Art Nouveau and Art Deco, seeing them as past movements – a means to a present end. Contemporary architecture styles consistently lean further toward minimalism, which makes it increasingly difficult to observe previous decorative movements at work. However, that does not mean they are absent.
Art Nouveau was a movement that spread internationally in the time between the late 19th century and the start of the first World War. With a focal point on “new art,” it combined past sentiments of handcrafted works from the Arts and Crafts movement with the “art for arts sake” Aesthetic Movement sensibilities. The term was coined in the Belgian magazine L’Art Moderne in order to describe works by Les Vignt, a group of twenty creators seeking to bridge the gaps between visual, performing, and decorative arts. Simultaneous to the rise of Art Nouveau was the popularization of Post Impressionism and the settling reality of art in a post-industrial world. Art Nouveau at its core is a reclamation of the natural inspiration many artists felt was lost amongst the mass production brought about by industrialization. As well as what could be observed by the naked eye, artists and architects observed scientific illustrations for inspiration, such as Heinrich Haeckel’s Kunstformen der Natur (Art Forms in Nature, 1899). While the resulting sweeping natural lines can be found in pieces of solely visual art, such as the works of Alphonse Mucha, architects also drew inspiration from the forms, though few true Art Nouveau buildings remain, comparative to the amount that was constructed, due to changing artistic sentiments.
In the years following Art Nouveau, a bold new architectural and artistic style was coming into fashion, directly influenced by movements such as the Vienna Secession. Art Deco was in many ways a pushback to the whimsicality of Art Nouveau in a post-war world where industrialization took hold as the forefront of modern life. Full of sharp edges and geometric forms, the Art Deco movement took over architecture, leaving us in the 21st Century with some of the most notable buildings in the Western World. In the years of Art Nouveau’s decline, World War I did not leave much space for the romanticization that it embodied, so there was little pushback when flowing lines and natural motifs began to solidify into more angular forms. Where Art Nouveau observed the natural world for inspiration, Art Deco leaned into anthropological influences, drawing inspiration from global cultures for elements of design, as showcased in the popularization of “Egyptian-style” architecture details at the time – embellishments inspired by tomb decorations and a rising modern interest in history’s influence on art. Art Deco looked at human collectivity with triumph, a much needed morale boost in a post-war world. Together, Art Nouveau and Art Deco showcase a snapshot of global history in the midst of worldwide conflict, documenting the stark reality of industrialization and war on creative aspirations. Due to the time period and present world events, Art Nouveau is visible through Art Deco, and both remain integral to understanding current world architecture.
Creative Research: Line and Form
For my creative research, I compiled some of the references used for original Art Nouveau architecture styles (Ernst Haeckel’s Scientific Illustrations), images of Art Nouveau buildings, and images of Art Deco buildings. I then made designs for each, exploring the forms in each style and how lines intersect. To find my references, I read a couple of books on art deco architecture, as well as tracing back to the sources of both Art Nouveau and Art Deco styles. I found the latter far easier to observe, as the geometric lines are much more my style, even if the Art Nouveau style is more personally appealing. It was honestly harder than I expected, as I went through multiple iterations of a sketch page before I settled on one that I felt at least vaguely captured a style like those I was attempting to replicate. While the sketch page was an interesting conclusion to reach for me, it was certainly not my first idea for the assignment, as I originally aimed to capture examples of these two architecture styles in city life as I could observe them. This led me to one of the conclusions mentioned in my previous research – that Art Nouveau has largely faded from urban spheres in the States and is now most easily observed in historical pieces and locations. While Art Deco is certainly present in some areas, it is largely overshadowed by the crushing weight of minimalist urban design.
Between my two processes, I definitely gained a greater understanding of both types of architecture, but also how they fit into the cultural experience of the time. Contemporary art movements will be looked at in the same light in a century, I’m sure, with the hindsight of global events to accurately examine what “stuck” and what faded with a good reputation. That is not to say that we aren’t conscientious of what motifs and ideals stick in a contemporary art context, but the case study of these two styles brings to mind the political world at the moment and what we as civilians tend to gravitate towards when it comes to architecture. The rise of minimalism coinciding with the popularization of social media and widespread channels for news and stimulation did not go unnoticed, as well as the connotations of wealth and poverty in relation to maximalism and “clutter.” While a whole other research paper could be done on these modern parallels, that’s not where this research landed. Art Nouveau and Art Deco both expand far beyond what I covered here, and beyond architecture in general, but it was certainly interesting to do this research and distill them. I started with my research, building on what I already knew about Art Nouveau, as I previously intended to just do the assignment on it. I then branched out my scope to include Art Deco, as I found that its immediacy in response to World War I was a large factor in the fading out of Art Nouveau as a preference in artistic expression. Moving to the creative portion, I explored both designs through extensive creative research and a bit of exploration myself. Overall, I do feel that the creative aspects added to the experience, but a lot of the interest for me did simply come from observing the primary sources of each style and watching the work develop.
Bibliography
Bayer, Patricia. Art Deco Architecture: Design, Decoration and Detail from the Twenties and Thirties. London: Thames & Hudson, 1992.
Benedictus, Edouard, Jean Saudé, and Yvanhoe Rambosson. Relais 1930. Paris: Vincent, 1930.
Gontar, Cybele. “Art Nouveau: Essay: The Metropolitan Museum of Art: Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History.” The Met, January 1, 2001. https://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/artn/hd_artn.htm.
Haeckel, Ernst. Kunstformen der Natur. Leipzig u.a.: Verl. des Bibliogr. Inst, 1899.
Hohenadel, Kristin. “What Is Art Nouveau Architecture?” The Spruce, February 6, 2022. https://www.thespruce.com/what-is-art-nouveau-architecture-5194926.
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