Research Paper, for Arts Class
Art Deco is an ancient design and decoration style that emerged at the end of the nineteenth century. The design style succeeded Art Nouveau. After its emergence and adoption, the style reached a peak during the first and the Second World War (1918 to 1940). The First World War is documented as the mark of the conception and adoption of the style and is commonly referred to as the Art Deco era (Cook& Klotz, 1993). Subsequently, the name Art Deco was derived during a later time characterized by the events of the Exposition des Arts Decoratifs et Industriels which took place in Paris in the year 1925. Art Deco proved to be the first true style of the 20th century due to its unique characteristics and distinguishing features from its predecessor Art Nouveau. Art Deco brought new elements of art into the design style by upholding the often disregarded importance of craftsmanship. The style gained major benefits from the industrialized world of the century in that there was a greater potential for mass production and an increased ability to apply the machinery as compared to earlier designs that depended entirely on craftsmanship.
Changing Patterns
The period beginning in the 1920s was generally regarded as a very successful period in human development in which much of potential was maximized through inventions and new discoveries. This was the period of in which the Motor Car and the elegant transatlantic liner were developed. The period was filled with a deep sitting promise of success in major sectors propelled by the increasing prosperity that was driven by new technologies. The predecessor of Art Deco is rather a simpler style; Art Nouveau. The style was popular among people due to its movement styles and properties which embraced lavish, intricate ornamentation properties, superlative craftsmanship and fine materials in its designs. Art Deco, on the other hand, was an elegant style that capitalized on the elements of decorative art, design and architecture. These styles began as modernist reaction tendencies to replace Art Nouveau styles. Art Deco brought changes into the design style coming with new movements. The architecture and arts in art Deco basically built on the initial movements of Art Nouveau by expanding on Constructivism, Cubism, Bauhaus and Futurism. It was characterized by the marked use of angular and symmetrical geometric forms among other properties.
Stylistic Movements in Art deco
Expanding on the movements of its predecessor Art deco brought on board new properties into earlier movements. It enhanced these movements bringing out better designs and appearances.
Constructivism
This movement originated in Russia before the First World War. The movement was common in sculptural works, industrial material and geometric constructions. Generally, this design made more use of wood, art and glass in its styles. Despite the fact that constructivism was more popular in industrial designs, art deco applied its features in more decorative patterns thereby incorporating its elements into the basic Art deco craftsmanship.
Bauhaus
This movement has origins in Germany. It was developed in the German Bauhaus School of art and architecture. This movement applied the principles of classic architecture that rejected the use of ornamentation of any kind (Glancey, 2000). Rather, the designs were ordinary geometrical styles that largely lacked the attraction. Art deco incorporated the principles of Bauhaus into its decorative properties to bring out styles that had both classic geometrical patterns as well as decoration that improved appearance of features.
Cubism
It is a native French movement emerged in the 1920s. The movement was marked by change from representational art that reproduced properties of futures in other forms (Glancey, 2000). Art Deco embraced Cubism through its emphasis on the basic abstract geometry that was added on the surface of objects to produce new angles simultaneously. This property enhanced appearance and decorative attributes of objects that were the basic objective in art deco.
Futurism
This is a French native movement that was introduced in the early 1930s. This movement was characterized by a marked application of the wild beat property in that it applied elements of distortion and violent colors that produced unique appearances (Glancey, 2000). Art deco exploited futurism in terms of creating abstract properties through color and improving attraction.
Notable Designers in Art Deco
Many designers contributed in the development of Art Deco. Each designer had unique additions to the design through features that distinguish them. While Art Deco can be scrutinized easily from its basic properties, the underlying elements of each designer have a striking signature characteristic from other work.
Tamara De Lempicka
She was born Maria Gorska in Poland in the year 1929. She brought major changes in the portrait style. Tamara mainly emphasized the importance of the subject in a portrait style asserting the need to capture the liberated and independence person from the persona (Pelli, 1999). Her works are based on classical Art Deco styles such as the nude female body. She valued the decorative characteristics of Art deco reflected from her attractive works that have colorful orientations with a clear, striking sense of creativity. Through her contribution in portrait styles, she developed Art Deco expanding its ability to express itself and thereby enhance its application in modern art.
Erte
Romain De Tirtoff is popularly known by his art name Erte. He was born and raised in Russia. His ambition in art was driven by his fascination by the Persian miniatures that his father owned. He is one of the most recognized artists of the 1920s. His main contribution to Art Deco was through theatre and fashion (Pelli, 1999). He produced the elements of Art deco in decorating items of theatre and film as well as fashion. He emphasized the importance of decoration in the theater through the use of Art Deco elements that produced unique attraction that captures the attention of audiences.
Cassandre
He was born Adolphe Mourone in Ukraine in 1901. He is a notable artist of the 1920s. His ambition in arts was induced by the works of art he witnessed after his family relocated to France. He studied painting in Paris but his main contribution to Art Deco emerged through his works in designing posters (Pelli, 1999). His designs mainly capture luxurious transport designs which were under discovery in the 1920s. He provided the grounds on which painting improved Art deco.
William Van Allen
He was born in 1883 in Brooklyn. Van Allen was a successful architect and he is fondly renowned for his design of the Chrysler building in New York. His greatest contribution to Art Deco was the expression of art in architectural designs (Pelli, 1999). He applied the basic elements of Art Deco in producing attractive building designs.
Major examples of Art Deco
The Hoover Dam
The Hoover Dam is one of the striking examples of typical Art Deco. It is often compared to the great pyramids of Egypt due to its unique design and stability over the years. The dam represents the height of the works in Art Deco by various designers of America. It is a monument that reflects the ability of Art to produce attractive monolithic public works which continue to stand despite the adverse conditions. It was conceived and developed by Arthur Powell Davis in 1902. The dam was constructed through a cooperation of various companies under direction by U.S. Bureau of Reclamation.
The Golden Gate Bridge
It was designed by Irving Morrow. Initially, the idea of the design seemed too abstract and inapplicable sighting the major difficulties of ensuring stability of the bridge over the course of time. The bridge design had been developed as a hybrid cantilever and suspension structure that would sit across the Golden Gate (Venturi, 1996). The plan then seemed unsightly and a far from the elegant properties of art that stood out in other architectural works of that time. Today, the bridge is an iconic feature and architectural work that defines the classical Art Deco form. It is admired by people the world over and regarded as a valuable sculpture of Art.
Memorial Art Museum
The Memorial Art Museum at Oberlin College in Ohio is another classic example of Art deco. It was designed by Robert venture. Venturi emphasized the application of attractive designs in the interior design of the museum (Allen Memorial Art Museum at Oberlin College, 2006). He achieved the goal by designing an addition of geometry in Art deco that conformed to the pattern of attractive interior designs without removing the original significance of the building. He also emphasized specific and unique qualities of the architectural gem that characterize modern design. The Allen Memorial Art Museum was officially opened for public use in the year 1977 and today it is seen as one of the best examples of modern and postmodern architecture in the world.
References
Allen Memorial Art Museum at Oberlin College. About our building. (December, 2006). Retrieved December 5, 2006, from http://www.oberlin.edu/amam/building.html
Cook, J., & Klotz, H. (1993). Conversations with architects. New York: Praeger Publishers
Glancey, J. (2000). The story of architecture. New York: Corling Kindersley Publishing.
Pelli, C. (1999). Observations for young architects. New York: Monacelli Press.
Venturi, R. (1996). Complexity and contradiction in architecture. New York: Museum of Modern Art.
