Art Nouveau

Art Nouveau

1. {1890 - 1905}

2. 'New Art' was an international style of decoration and architecture that developed in the late 19th century.

   • It was developed by a new generation of artists and designers who sought to fashion an art form appropriate to their modern age.
     • It was during the period that modern urban life, as we recognise it today, was also established.
     • Many contemporary artists, designers and architects were excited by new technologies and lifestyles, while others retreated into the past, embracing the spirit world, fantasy and myth.
       • In architecture, for example glass and wrought iron were often creatively combined in preference to traditional stone and wood.

3. Nature

   • Heavily influenced by natural forms: sinuous, elongated, curvy 'whiplash' linesa nd stylised flowers, leaves, roots, buds and seedpods.

4. The Female Form

   • Referred to as 'feminine art' due to its frequent use of languid female figures in pre-Raphaelite pose with long flowing hair.

5. Other Cultures

   • The arts and artefacts of japan were a crucial inspiration for Art Nouveau. Japaanese woodcuts, with asymmetrical outlines and the minimal grid structures of Japanese interiors provided vertical lines and heights. Celtic, Arabian and ancient Greek patterns provided inspration for interwined ribbon patterns

6. Charles Rennie Mackintosh

   • 1868 - 1928
   • New artistic harmony. The elements, furniture, furnishings and decoration produced highly aesthetic yet practical domestic and commercial evironments
     • His style incoprated a contrast between strong right angle and foral-inspired decorative motifs with subtle curves, along with some references to traditional Scottish architecture.