Art Deco: Iconic Design & Lifestyle of the 1920s & 1930s timeline. (2023)

FAQs

What was the style of art between 1920 and 1930? ›

Art Deco, also called style moderne, movement in the decorative arts and architecture that originated in the 1920s and developed into a major style in western Europe and the United States during the 1930s.

Art Deco was a reaction to the Art Nouveau movement of the late 19th and early 20th century, which featured an organic, sinuous aesthetic that emphasised geometric shapes in clean, angular, and symmetrical forms with clearly delineated colours. This style infuses simple decorative design into functional objects.

The 1920s and '30s saw the emergence of a series of seminal new European art movements, including Art Deco, Cubism and Surrealism, among others.

Art Deco is a very distinctive visual style that was at its peak during the 1920s and 1930s. Clean, geometric and streamlined forms, bold, bright colours, and a touch of sophistication and glamour make it an iconic and captivating style, whose influence is still present today.

Art Deco influenced the design of buildings, furniture, jewelry, fashion, cars, movie theatres, trains, ocean liners, and everyday objects such as radios and vacuum cleaners.

Art Deco is famous for priming simplicity as a luxury. It was as a celebration of progress according to a modern aesthetic, representing the 20th century.

Empire State Building, New York City

The most prominent art deco structure in the world is Manhattan's Empire State Building, which took just over a year to complete. The 102-story skyscraper, conceived by architects Shreve, Lamb, and Harmon, has a steel frame covered in granite and limestone.

The architecture that emerged from the Art Deco period is possibly one of the most well-known features of the entire art movement. Making its debut in Paris between 1903 and 1904, Art Deco architecture began with the construction of two apartment buildings designed by Auguste Perret and Henri Savage.

Art Deco may be one of the most iconic movements of the 1920s. By combining luxury materials like ivory, gold, platinum, and diamonds with the decorative use of geometric shapes and lines, Art Deco became an art form that represented luxury and modernity.

What style of art was in the 1920's? ›

Replacing elaborate styles associated with Victorianism, a new artistic movement called Art Deco flourished throughout the 1920s. Art Deco style was applied not only to art but also architecture, furniture design, fashion, advertising and many other areas. Art Deco was minimalist and streamlined.

Themes concerning sexuality, technology, and social progress were prominent in the culture and art in the 1920s. Artists, musicians, writers aimed to produce something innovative and dynamic.

Art Deco, short for the French Arts Décoratifs, and sometimes just called Deco, is a style of visual arts, architecture, and product design, that first appeared in France in the 1910s (just before World War I), and flourished in the United States and Europe during the 1920s and 1930s.

Many accent pieces such as clocks, radios and other common household are also manufactured in Art Deco design. The main characteristics to look out for in these Art Deco pieces are Bakelite, semi-circles, smooth lines and muted color pallets consisting of red, green, orange, yellow, white and black tints.

Art Deco fashion relied heavily on beautifully textured richly dyed fabrics that lent depth to the simple angular lines of the dresses. These dresses relied more upon simple shapes combined with the bold colors and textures textiles to the depth, beauty and overall effect of the fashion.

Materials. Art deco materials included stucco, concrete, smooth-faced stone, and terra cotta. Steel and aluminum were often used along with glass blocks and decorative opaque plate glass (vitrolite).

The Art Deco Movement encompasses the 1920s and 30's, or the period between the wars. There was an overlap and transition from one movement to another and, in general, had it not been for the First World War, the Art Deco period would have begun earlier.

Art Deco style was at the height of its popularity during the 1920s and 1930s, but it remains a staple in interior design today. It can still be seen in architecture, furniture, textiles, wallpaper designs, jewelry, glassware, lighting fixtures, and more.

The bold, structured style of Art Deco design is captivating and nostalgic. The simple, clean geometric shapes offer a streamlined look that people love to work in their homes. Additionally, some designers are attributing today's political climate as a reason for Art Deco's resurgence.

During World War II, Art Deco fell out of fashion and was disused until the 1960s when it saw a resurgence in interest. It was lovingly revisited, and still is today, as a style that harkens back to time quite different to today in between two the two World Wars and amongst the hardships of the Great Depression.

What are Art Deco patterns called? ›

Art Deco Patterns Design

However, in the later period of the Art Deco movement, the patterns were known for their curving forms and long horizontal lines. This later period of the style is called Streamline Moderne and it's also characterized by rich colors, bold geometric shapes and lavish ornamentation.

Art Deco's main visual characteristics derive from repetitive use of linear and geometric shapes including triangular, zigzagged, trapezoidal, and chevron-patterned forms.

Art Deco buildings have a sleek, linear appearance with stylized, often geometric ornamentation. The primary façade of Art Deco buildings often feature a series of set backs that create a stepped outline. Low-relief decorative panels can be found at entrances, around windows, along roof edges or as string courses.

Some of the most common elements of Art Deco graphic design include geometric shapes (triangles in particular), strong lines, zigzags, and thick-stroked typography, lots of unused space, and chevron patterns. One of the most famous Art Deco posters was created for the movie The Great Gatsby.

The Art Deco period is typically in the years of the 1920s and 1930s, and takes its name from the 1925 Paris exhibition. This was the beginning of the first truly modern style after the Edwardian period (1901-1910). It was a whole new style with bright colours being used to enhance visual and 3D designs.

Art Deco wasn't officially given its name until 1966. The designation was taken directly from the name of the1925 Paris World's Fair–Exposition Internationale des Arts Décoratifs et Industriels Modernes.

The Art Deco aesthetic first emerged in France before World War One. But this movement was only announced to the public in 1925 at the Exposition Internationale des Arts Décoratifs et Industriels Modernes; the exhibition was inspired loosely by the concept of the World's Fair.

There were several artistic movements in the 1920s, considered part of the Modern Art movement. Some of them include Art Deco, Impressionism, Expressionism, the Harlem Renaissance, Dadaism, and Surrealism.

Art Deco may be one of the most iconic movements of the 1920s. By combining luxury materials like ivory, gold, platinum, and diamonds with the decorative use of geometric shapes and lines, Art Deco became an art form that represented luxury and modernity.

What was art like in the 1920s? ›

Expressionism and Surrealism were popular art movements in the 1920s that originated in Europe. Surrealism involved elements of surprise and unexpected juxtapositions, and both movements embraced a philosophy of nonconformity. Dada began in Zurich and its artwork incorporated nonsense, absurdity and cubist elements.

Expressionism. As a modernist movement, Expressionism originated in Germany during the 1920s art period.

The term 'Art Deco' is taken from the name of the 1925 Paris exhibition titled Exposition Internationale des Arts Décoratifs et Industriels Modernes. The most popular and respected French artists of the day showcased their work at this exhibition.

The architecture that emerged from the Art Deco period is possibly one of the most well-known features of the entire art movement. Making its debut in Paris between 1903 and 1904, Art Deco architecture began with the construction of two apartment buildings designed by Auguste Perret and Henri Savage.

Art Deco buildings have a sleek, linear appearance with stylized, often geometric ornamentation. The primary façade of Art Deco buildings often feature a series of set backs that create a stepped outline. Low-relief decorative panels can be found at entrances, around windows, along roof edges or as string courses.

Jazz music became wildly popular in the “Roaring Twenties,” a decade that witnessed unprecedented economic growth and prosperity in the United States. Consumer culture flourished, with ever greater numbers of Americans purchasing automobiles, electrical appliances, and other widely available consumer products.

Art Deco drew its look from concepts as global as the rustic tribal designs of Africa, the sleek sophistication of Paris, the elegant geometry and sculpture used in ancient Greco-roman architecture, geometrically influenced representational forms of Ancient Egypt and the stepped pyramid structures and bas relief ...

The 1920s was a decade of profound social changes. The most obvious signs of change were the rise of a consumer-oriented economy and of mass entertainment, which helped to bring about a "revolution in morals and manners." Sexual mores, gender roles, hair styles, and dress all changed profoundly during the 1920s.

The Art Deco Movement encompasses the 1920s and 30's, or the period between the wars. There was an overlap and transition from one movement to another and, in general, had it not been for the First World War, the Art Deco period would have begun earlier.

A number of outstanding 20th century artists working outside the many movements of art created works of great individuality. (Collier's Encyclopedia, 745) Some major trends of the art in the 1920's were Impressionism, Art Deco, Cubism, Abstract Art, and Realism.

What is popular culture in art? ›

Manifest in everything from film to food labels, popular culture includes the cultural activities, products, images, and ideas embraced by the broader public, particularly as seen in mass media.

The artists of the 1930s art movement known as the American Scene ranged from Regionalists such as Grant Wood, Thomas Hart Benton, and John Steuart Curry, who commemorated the qualities of rural America, while Urban Realists such as Isabel Bishop and Reginald Marsh, and Social Realists such as William Gropper, Ben ...

In 1937 came the Exposition Internationale des Arts et Techniques dans la Vie Moderne. Its emphasis on science and technology decisively, if unintentionally, marked the end of the Art Deco period.