Exploring Art Nouveau! A look into this beautiful Design style!

I am super excited to go over today's video. Today, we are deep diving into Art Nouveau. If you're interested in floral and curves and linear designs, elegant silhouettes, you're going to love today's design style. Now, today, we're gonna deep dive into the history of this style, some probably notable architectural elements that you have seen before, but it definitely is a style that is very unique, and I think you're gonna really appreciate it. All right, guys, let's dive in. So let's talk about what is Art Nouveau. This was a design style that gained popularity between 1890 and 1910. Yes, we're going way back. So one of the things that this style showcased, as previously mentioned, are floral patterns, curves, linear designs, elegant silhouettes, and many other interesting features. What I love about this aesthetic, which is really similar to the Bauhaus movement that we talked about recently, is that it also goes into things like furniture, architecture, fine art, pottery, and even glassware. So there is a wide range of items that fall under the Art Nouveau style, which I find really interesting when we get into looks that are not just based on a couple different items, but really a wide variety of items for you to explore and see and really embrace. So if you're a movie buff, you may recognize this style from the 1964 film, My Fair Lady. Yes, it's like if you're a history movie buff, like something from way back in the day, then you may recognize this. If not, that's cool, but just, you know, just so you know. So one of the quotes that I would like to share with you from this design movement is from the famous architect Hector Guimard, and the quote says, "'Art Nouveau' was inspired by all the fluid forms of nature. It was a very new thing at the time because most houses were in a heavy Victorian fashion." If you're interested in going further into this, further than I'm gonna go into this, here are some notable people to check out. So the best designer of the time that you wanna check out is Louis Majorelle, Majorelle, probably something, because it's French. I'm gonna put the name up on the screen for you guys so you can go and check that out. A lighting designer to check out of the time is Emile Galle, Galle, I feel like it's Galle, Emile Galle. I'm terrible with names. If you've watched even more than one of my videos, you have probably figured that out. Terrible with names, so I apologize. However, on the screen, check it out. And famous architect of the time, already mentioned him briefly, but that's Hector Gumard. So I will put those names up on the screen. I will even link down below just so you have the spelling if you wanna copy, paste, and deep dive. I don't know if you wanna do that, but if you do, it's there for you. All right, so what are some of the general characteristics of this design style? Flowing lines. One of my favorite architects, which is Gaudi, you will see this a lot in his architecture and is absolutely stunning. You'll probably recognize some of these. And it is a hallmark of the Art Nouveau style is these flowing curvilinear lines. What I thought was really interesting is that it really wanted to step away from that geometric and very strict linear look that we had seen in previous movements. Basically, every single detail within the Art Nouveau period has curved features. So windows, door openings, furniture, and you're really seeing that a lot today. So I felt like this was really relevant. And thank you to one of my subscribers for actually suggesting to cover this style because it is perfectly tailored with a lot of the trends that we're seeing now. And yes, they're in a much more, I guess, current or modern form, but the curvilinear form is really, really significant in the Art Nouveau movement. Another really big feature and characteristic of this look is nature. I feel like that comes from a lot of different looks, but in Art Nouveau, the inspiration from nature is very big in this look. It is the artist's muse, you could say. And a big part of it is using those natural forms within its architecture, design, furniture, decor, and that's where you really see the inspiration from it. But also flora and fauna comes into a lot of the design styles that were used in this period as well. So one of the interesting materials that's really, really common in this look and during this time is wrought iron. Wrought iron was not new by any means. However, the way that Art Nouveau used wrought iron was really interesting. They were able to really give it some airiness and lightness to it, which is kind of unusual because wrought iron is such a heavy material, but they really were using it in a lot more decorative of a way with the curves and that natural element to it. And it really was interesting, you would see it on a lot of railings and curved staircases, as well as windows, like even the bars on windows were done with this style. Furniture, decorative objects, et cetera. There was a lot of wrought iron used in this era. So I've mentioned this before when we talked about our arts and crafts, but one of the big things in the Art Nouveau era and the Art Nouveau design style is stained glass. And I feel like I have yet to see it really cut back in popularity to this extent. However, it's very recognizable in this era. A lot of times it was used for windows, of course, as well as wall decor and even within some furniture, like think of lamps, ornaments, having that curved line, very fluid forms, very natural forms, very, very interesting ways of using stained glass in the Art Nouveau period. We got to talk about in Art Nouveau, one of the most popular patterns is using the floral pattern, which yes, we've seen that in arts and crafts and it's used in many different styles and many different periods. And they all almost have their own like unique twist on how they use a floral pattern. Within this particular style, it was really popular to use lilies, irises, orchids, and also a lot of local flowers as well. So other than flowers and floral motifs, it was really common to use insects in their design elements. So again, this beauty of nature was really embraced in the Art Nouveau period. A lot of times in their motifs, you'll see items like grasshoppers, dragonflies, colorful bugs. Again, really interesting with this movement, the use of insects and also birds, which is nothing new, but birds of paradise, peacocks, which interestingly enough, there is this wallpaper from Anthropologie that I'm absolutely in love with. It has a peacock on it. I guess it's maybe a little bit Art Nouveau-ish. I didn't even like put that together, but I'm like in love with it. And I really want it in my bathroom, but I haven't gotten there yet. Parrots were also really big in this time. Basically artists of this time were really using for like exotic, colorful creatures to use within their decor. So something that's really notable from this period is called the whiplash curve. So this is a hallmark of the Art Nouveau movement, and it was created by Herman Obritz. The wall hanging that he created was called cyclamen. It became a really popular motif from this movement, and you will see it kind of recreated in a lot of different ways. So one of the features that I really noticed when you think about Art Nouveau is the stairs. The stairs become a really interesting focal point in the Art Nouveau period. It goes from ordinary to extraordinary. I found what was really interesting is the use of curves, the way of making a staircase very grand, feel like a piece of artwork. And again, bringing in that wrought iron detail that I had mentioned earlier is what really made these stairs stand out. The Art Nouveau period really tried to embrace them, bring in lots of natural light, and also using the curves and a lot of decorative elements to really make it more of a presence within the architectural space. So the furniture was a lot of handcrafted wooden pieces, again, using those curved forms, also bringing ornamentation around floral motifs, as well as some stained glass elements. One of the really interesting headboards that I found was this beautiful headboard that resembles butterfly wings. I think probably one of the most notable pieces from this period that you'll recognize, and most people recognize, is a Tiffany lamp. That was really famous from the Art Nouveau period, and I find that, especially if you're into a boho eclectic vibe, you can really bring this into a lot of other design styles as well. Another really interesting accessory that was brought in quite often in this look, however, it was kind of more the wealthy and the higher class, we can say is a gramophone. And you'll recognize these, but it really is because of its shape and its curves, a really interesting nod to the Art Nouveau era. Just a brief pause here. If you're enjoying this content, please don't forget to hit the like button below. It does really let me know that you're enjoying the video, as well as it helps the algorithm and all those kind of things. So if you don't mind doing that, I would greatly appreciate it. So I briefly want to touch on one of my absolute favorite architects from this period, and that is Antoni Gaudi. Now he is in Barcelona, Spain, where he brought this movement there, and there is a lot of famous, famous architectural pieces, architectural buildings, not pieces, that he has designed and built in Barcelona that is from this Art Nouveau style, from this era. At the time, you know, he was very much considered avant-garde, bringing in this Art Nouveau style. He was really well known for his eclectic design style. What I thought was really interesting was the use of curves in his buildings. I mean, they just stand out as such a piece of complete artwork. And although it's an architectural building, I will say that they are artwork. I just want to share with you guys my absolute favorite architectural building from Gaudi, and that is Caso Bato building. I did Google it. I said it right. Wally's according to Google, that's how it's said. Caso Bato building. What I love about this piece is just everything, but the curves that he uses on the space, even in the windows and the balconies, it's really a piece of artwork, even more than it is just a piece of architecture. And that's what I absolutely love about him as an architect, is just he really pushed the limits, I think, of what architecture could be, and that's why he is so famous for his architecture. So this building was renovated by Gaudi in 1904. It was originally built in 1877. So this was actually something that he transformed from its original state into the state that it is now. It's absolutely stunning. What I really love is how he showcased so many of the Art Nouveau characteristics, the curvilinear lines that are used throughout the facade, a ton of stained glass. The balconies are absolutely stunning with the curves and just the detail work that are done on them, as well as using glass mosaic up the facade of this building. Absolutely hit every single point of Art Nouveau just in the exterior of this building alone, let alone the inside. But it was really interesting just how he incorporated all of these beautiful, ornate features into this architectural redesign. So yeah, and if you search Gaudi, I'll list him with those other really notable people below. He has a lot of really beautiful, interesting buildings that are showcasing the Art Nouveau movement, but that one I just wanted to cover as one of my personal favorites. I always try to draw in on stuff that I'm really drawn to, and there is so much that you can look into under this look, but it is a really interesting and unique look, and I feel like there's a touch of it coming into today with all the use of curves. I wouldn't say Art Nouveau is the trend that we're going in, but definitely the use of curves and that softer line and just really embracing some of those more natural materials and natural feeling within spaces, we are definitely seeing that again. If you enjoyed today's video, definitely jump on over and check out this video next. Apparently YouTube thinks you're gonna like it, so, you know, go and check it out. All right, guys, until next time, bye.