Art Deco
also: Style Moderne · Arts Décoratifs
Art Deco took its name from the 1925 Paris exposition (Exposition Internationale des Arts Décoratifs et Industriels Modernes) and became the defining visual language of the interwar decades. It fused craft-derived luxury - lacquer, ivory, exotic woods, chrome - with machine-age geometry: stepped forms, chevrons, sunbursts, and streamlined curves. Where Art Nouveau flowed organic, Art Deco snapped to order; where it courted the hand-made, Deco embraced the skyscraper, the ocean liner, and mass-produced glamour. It scaled from cigarette cases to the Chrysler Building, and from fashion (Erté) to poster design (A.M. Cassandre), making it one of the most commercially successful design languages ever devised.
Defining characteristics
- Bold geometry: zigzags, chevrons, sunbursts, stepped ziggurat forms
- Symmetry and strong verticality
- Luxurious, modern materials: chrome, glass, lacquer, terrazzo, neon
- Streamlined, aerodynamic curves in later 'Streamline Moderne' phase
- Stylized, angular figuration and exoticized motifs (fountains, panthers, sphinxes)
- Machine-age optimism rendered decorative
Key figures
- Erté (Romain de Tirtoff) (1892-1990) — Fashion and stage illustration that defined Deco elegance
- Tamara de Lempicka (1898-1980) — Deco portraiture with polished, sculptural finish
- A.M. Cassandre (1901-1968) — Poster art and typography (Nord Express, Normandie)
- Clarice Cliff (1899-1972) — Brought Deco geometry to mass-market ceramics
- William Van Alen (1883-1954) — Architect of the Chrysler Building, the style's totem
Example works
- Chrysler Building — William Van Alen (1930)
- Nord Express (poster) — A.M. Cassandre (1927)
- Radio City Music Hall interior — Donald Deskey et al. (1932)
Sources
- Art Deco - Wikipedia encyclopedia
- Art Deco - The Art Story critical
- An introduction to Art Deco - Victoria and Albert Museum museum