Ceramics and Pottery Arts and Resources

Orange Black and Cream Vase –Boch Freres

 

 

Art Deco delight

 

The curvaceous and sensuous lines of Art Nouveau morphed into the polar opposite of the more straight and angular lines which defined the commanding style of Art Deco in the 20’s and 30‘s. Art Deco’s ornamental style, and its lavishness is attributed to the reaction to the forced austerity imposed by World War I. At the same time the Deco’s rigid and regimental lines mirrored the austerity at the time..  Germany embraced and  influenced the later Art Deco designs. The curved lines of Nouveau were more inclusive and Feng Shui positive then the exclusive and more hostile sharp angles that followed with Deco.

Architecturally Art Deco was easier to adopt in building design then Art Nouveau, a match made in heaven with the emergance of the skyscaper age.  Art Deco was of the Machine Age and it adopted its streamline technologies such as modern aviation, electric lighting, radio, ocean liners and skyscrapers for inspiration. The art deco style, which above all reflected modern technology of the time, was characterized by smooth lines, geometric shapes, streamlined forms and bright, sometimes garish colours. Art Deco was used extensively in the United States for railway stations during the 1930s, being designed to represent the modernity and efficiency of railway trains.

 

 The foundation of Art Deco :

The foundation of Art Deco was based on mathematical geometric forms. The ability to travel easily and the numerous archaeological excavations during this period; the tomb of Tutankhamun, Pompeii, Troy, etc., influenced both artists and designers who integrated several foreign elements into their work. At its best, art deco represented elegance, glamour, functionality and modernity.

Art Deco became the first truly international style, spreading quickly around the world during the 1920s and 1930s.  A myriad of artists beutifully interpreted Art Deco and made it a higly distinctive and memorable era of design.

Art Deco decorative themes  :

( from ArtDecoNapier )

◊     Sunbursts and fountains – representing the dawn of a new modern age.
◊    The Skyscraper shape – symbolic of the 20th century.
◊     Symbols of speed –  power and flight – the exciting new developments in transport and communications.
◊     Geometric shapes – representing the machine and technology which it was thought would solve all our problems.
◊    The new woman – revelling in her recently won social freedoms.
◊     Breaking the rules – cacophonous jazz, short skirts and hair, shocking dances.
◊     Ancient cultures – for oddly enough, there was a fascination with the civilizations of Egypt and Central America.

 

 

Eva Zeisel Jug 1929 Germany

1930’s  Earthenware Bookends Unsigned

Vintage Orchies Vase

French ceramic crackle glaze baluster vase of bulbous form.

( Sheryl’s Art Deco )

Art Deco Swan Planter Zanesville

1930’s Art Deco Polychrome Tobacco Set

Sarreguemines

French Art Deco Vase

Echo-of-Deco-custom Amber Sun clock

Rosenthal Vase 1930

Deco lamp turquoise Strangl

Phil Dale

Farmhouse-tea-for-two – Clarice Cliff

( Andrew Muir )

Leaping Nude Vase

artdeconapier.com

Royal Dalton

Nautilus Shell Vase

Zsolnay

1920s art deco crystalline pottery vase -Secretbackroom

Clarice Cliff Teapot

Vintage Hand Painted Clews

Belgium Art Deco tri handled vase

Phil Dale

Buren Art Deco Modernist Clock

McCoy

Vintage Brush McCoy Vase

Katzhutte art deco figurine

Boch Art Deco vase – designer Charles Catteau

French Art Deco 1930

Rosso marble and enamel Art Deco clock

Frankoma Crocus flower vase

from PrairieDecArts

 Mountain conical coffee pot – Clarice Cliff

Art Deco Vase – Authur Woods

Limoges, France, has long been a center of enamel ware. This Art Deco vase, dating from about 1925, is the product of Camille Faure and is enamelled with copper.

( Virginia Museum of Fine Arts )

Cygal Art Deco