High buildings, loose morals: Art Deco movement celebrates its centenary

Euronews

04-05-2025

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The French capital experienced the first emergence of the art and design phenomenon that was later termed Art Deco in the 1910s but only truly blossomed at the Paris World's Fair of 1925.
An artistic and philosophical response to the Art Nouveau movement of the late 19th century meant that, after the brutality of war and destruction during World War One, intricacy, whimsy and romanticism gave way pretty quickly to clean lines and geometric design. But there was also a sense of the need to enjoy oneself in style now it was possible again. So, 100 years later to the very week, let's find out more about it.
How did Art Deco emerge?
The 1925
Exposition Internationale des Arts Décoratifs et Industriels Modernes
inspired what became the more snappy name of Art Deco in a 1968 text by Bevis Hillier. The fair took place in the French capital and showcased the latest in modern design. Thus, the new movement became the embodiment of Modernist principles in the arena of art and design. Having many elements in common with Cubism and Russian Constructivism, Art Deco moved the focus from the ephemeral to the practical and the engineered. A craving for order after chaos, one might say. But that's not to imply it was in any way banal or down-at-heel. Quite the opposite.
The Savoy (Strand side), London
Jez Fielder
Where can I see Art Deco?
London's Savoy Hotel began life as very much an Art Nouveau entity but one of the company attended the Paris fair in 1925 and came back with some very different ideas for design.
British designer Basil Ionides' reworking of the private dining room '
Pinafore
' in 1926 embodied the stylistic change to Art Deco and is still untouched to the present day. Then, in 1929, architect Howard Robertson unveiled the iconic stainless steel 'Savoy' sign which runs the width of Savoy Court, above.
Brussels is also full of Art Deco. And not just in its celebrated municipal buildings such as the Villa Empain, the Basilica of Koekelberg, and elements of Stoclet Palace, but also in some of the Belgian city centre's residential areas.
And of course the city that kicked it all off, Paris, is a haven for Art Deco lovers. The Palais de Tokyo and the Théâtre des Champs-Élysées are two notable landmarks for this style.
But the movement outlived its European genesis to take the US by storm as evidenced by the imposing edifice below. Chicago's Merchandise Mart opened in 1930 with a staggering four million square feet of floor space.
Chicago's Art Deco Merchandise Mart
AP Photo 1998
What defines Art Deco?
An art movement is often hard to define as, even if it has a manifesto, that's usually only written by a handful of people at most, and later, others develop or even disown the early form.
Emma Bastin, historian and treasurer of the
Art Deco Society
in the UK says this is one of the reasons a definition is hard to pin down.
"It had so many influences feeding into it, from the very old, such as Ancient Egypt and Greece, to the very modern - for example, the most avant-garde art of the early twentieth century. It also draws from mass commercialisation, the work of artisans and the use of new-fangled man-made materials. Finally, it emerged in many different European countries at a similar time, all of which added to its eclecticism."
Ancient Egypt may seem a world away from the 'roaring twenties' but Howard Carter's
discovery of Tutankhamun's tomb
in 1922 brought antiquity back into the contemporary conversation. Only a short boat ride down the Chicago river stands the Riverside Plaza (completed in 1929) which, if you look closely enough, has an image referencing the pharaoh beneath its clock face.
The face of antiquity on the former Chicago Daily News building
Jez Fielder
But don't all these influences make these landmarks impossible to recognise as part of any specific movement?
"There is something which makes Art Deco instantly recognisable," Bastin insists.
"Geometric shapes, clean lines and bold colours are often used. There are also repeated motifs in many forms of art deco such as zig-zags, sunrays or human figures. Anything decorative is normally very simple and pared-back, rather than being photo-realistic. The upshot of this simplicity is that objects/buildings/art often looks very modern and glamorous, and this is why it also has such an enduring appeal - think of the glamour of Gatsby, the use of art-deco inspired interiors in luxury hotels, or the long-lasting appeal of posters which are now popular as art in their own right."
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The Knickerbocker Bar inside the ocean liner 'The Empress of Britain' May 16, 1931
AP PHOTO 1931
References to geometric shapes and clean lines don't simply apply to architecture, of course. Fashion leaps to mind.
An Art Deco red and black galalith and chrome necklace, Bonhams, London, Jan 2008.
AP Photo
And the release of perhaps the flagship Art Deco text 'The Great Gatsby' as a film over a decade ago was a fine platform for costume designers to revisit the styles of F. Scott Fitzgerald's heyday.
Stocks reached record peaks, and Wall Street boomed a steady golden roar. The parties were bigger, the shows were broader, the buildings were higher, the morals were looser, and the ban on alcohol had backfired
F. Scott Fitzgerald
The Great Gatsby
Dancers perform on the red carpet for the screening of The Great Gatsby in Cannes, May 2013
AP Photo
How did the movement develop?
Art Deco morphed into a more streamlined style as the 1930s progressed. Elements of excess were tempered and made less obvious. The focus was now on horizontal lines rather than vertical ones.
St Olaf's House opposite London Bridge Station
Jez Fielder
The look was inspired by upgrades in technology, particularly those aspects of technology that developed the lives of the glamorous. Ocean liners, aircraft and increasingly sleek trains. And the "new-fangled man-made materials" that Bastin talks about were chromium plating and the ability to build much higher that the burgeoning use of steel enabled. The verticality of the American Skyscraper is the clearest testament to that, but closer to home the use of Portland stone and gilt lettering as seen with London's St Olaf's House are also hallmarks of Art Deco and Streamline Moderne.
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At the same time, urban development created the need for more municipal buildings in the expanding suburbs and so there were increasing opportunities to build using this style and these elements.
In a way, then, Art Deco and its streamlined development could be seen as less of an art movement and more of a result of a changing society due to economic shifts and the need for a new environment with more services.