Art Deco is a form of Modernism that flourished in the United States and Europe following the Universal Exposition of 1900. Leaders of this movement believed in the importance of France’s decorative arts and marketing their achievements for business purposes. Interestingly, the ‘Decorative Artists Society’ led by Hector Guimard (1867-1942) inspired the name “Art Deco,” but the term did not become popular until the publication of “Art Deco of the 20’s and 30’s” by Bevis Hillier in 1968.
Art Deco design represented modernism turned into fashion. Its products included both individually crafted luxury items and mass-produced goods, but, in either case, the purpose was to create a sleek and anti conventional elegance that symbolized wealth and sophistication. This helped form the exclusive and diverse style that seamlessly got together the traditional pattern with machine engineered and industrial materials, rich colours, geometric shapes and lavish ornamentation. Art Deco was also heavily influenced by other styles including Cubism, Constructivism, Modernism and Futurism.
In the United States, during a period of severe economic depression, the Art Deco movement exhibited beauty and strength and extremely influenced a wide range of art and design areas including painting, sculpting, decorative art, product design, furniture design and architecture.
ART DECO IN ART
Art Deco in fine art is characterized by the use of angular, symmetrical geometric forms exhibiting clean lines and vivid colors and combined the simplistic styling that influenced many forms of art. One of the most prominent Art Deco painters was Tamara de Lempicka whose vivid and bold style characterizes the sophisticated feel of the movement. This can be seen in her 1925 iconic piece Auto-Portrait (Tamara in the Green Bugatti). In the field of sculpture, Boris Lovet Lorski’s stunning works are renowned for his sleek styling of female sculptures with narrow hips, broad shoulders and wide spread arms.
ART DECO IN ARCHITECTURE
One of the classic Art Deco subjects is that of 1930s-era skyscrapers such as New York's Chrysler Building, the Empire State Building and Daily News building. The former, designed by architect William Van Alen, is considered to be one of the world's great Art Deco style buildings.
Other examples are located in Los Angeles such as the Pellissier and Bullocks Wilshire buildings and the Wiltern Theatre where most of this Deco architecture was constructed in the late 1920s and early 1930s during a heavy period of urban renovation.
Perfect examples of many Art Deco buildings are in Miami Beach, Florida. The most remarkable are the thirty or so apartment and hotel blocks constructed between the 1920s and 1940s. Since their formation they have been listed as protected buildings and have undergone substantial restoration projects to make sure they retain their original look and unique pastel colouring.
ART DECO IN PRODUCT DESIGN
Gilbert Rohde (1894–1944), whose career as a furniture and industrial designer helped to define American modernism during its first phase from the late 1920s to World War II, is best known today for inaugurating modern design at Herman Miller Inc. He used elements from Art Deco and Modernism to create wonderful and unique items of furniture that became widely popular and synonymous with the two styles. Inspired by theories of aerodynamics developed for aviation and ballistics, Streamline Moderne applied these principles to a host of products such as automobiles, trains, ships, refrigerators, and other household goods. An example of this is in 1933 whereby the Chrysler Airflow was produced with Streamline styling. To this day the Airflow is considered a truly beautiful car that set a design precedent despite its commercial failure.
The Second World War caused Art Deco to decline in popularity due to the adversities that the war brought along in the economical sector. It was beginning to be perceived too extravagant and therefore America toned down the architectural styling and implemented more basic design with far less evident ornamentation.
Nevertheless, the Art Deco movement and streamline principles continue to inspire designers today. Our very own smart phones and computers use industrial materials combined with cutting edge technology and modern cars continue to emphasize the same aerodynamics and smooth lines that popularized Art Deco.
Bibliography
ArtHistory.net. ( 2013-2014 Bitter Soup LLC). ArtHistory.net. Retrieved January 15, 2015, from http://www.arthistory.net/artstyles/artdeco/artdeco1.html
Attribution-, C. C. (2014, October 2). Herman Miller (manufacturer). Retrieved January 15, 2015, from Wikimedia Foundation: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Herman_Miller_%28manufacturer%29
Britannica, T. E. (2014, 11 12). Art Deco - Art Movement. Retrieved January 15, 2015, from Encyclopædia Britannica: http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/36505/Art-Deco
CURL, J. S. (2000). Art Deco- A Dictionary of Architecture and Landscape Architecture. Retrieved January 15, 2015, from Eencyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/topic/art_deco.aspx
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