Art Nouveau Tiles

Rating:
Summary: Tiles for modern tastes....
Review: These days, many of us are becoming reacquainted with the art of our parents or grandparents...not the clunky Victorian stuff, but the wonderful jazzy "art" of the "nouveau." Sometimes I wonder why we ever got away from it, but I suspect two world wars and an economic depression in the 20th century played a big role.

In this lovely historical overview of the Art Nouveau period of tilemaking, Hans van Lemmen provides many up-close examples of individual decorative tiles, as well as 'in situ' photographs of the architectural designs employing these tiles. He begins by describing the Art Nouveau movment itself, which he says can be traced to various sources including the negative reaction to neoclassicism by various 19th Century artists and intellectuals. Some of them felt neoclassical art was pagan and wanted to return to a Gothic or Christian theme. Others reacted to the commercial and industrial use of the neoclassical and wanted to return to a naturalistic theme. In addition, Western artists during this period were heavily influenced by Japanese, Chinese and Indonesian art, which they incorporated into their work. It should surprise no one that one example Van Lemmen provides is a tile executed about 1900 which shows yellow and orange sunflowers (ala Van Gogh who died in 1890).

The book covers the major Art Nouveau centers. The section on Northern Europe (heavy emphasis on France where the movement may have begun) shows salon panels in private homes and other interior applications; Central Europe (especially Bohemia and Hungary) shows many exterior applications; Southern Europe, which features some of the Art Nouveau maiolica found in Barcelona; and the "New World" which includes the Bayard Building on Bleeker Street in New York City designed by Louis Sullivan (Chicago School of Architecture). Many of Van Lemmen's photographs include "fantastical" designs depicting nature, mythology, and abstract decorative subjects. Overall, this book is an informative introduction to the topic of Art Nouveau tiles and their uses and the section on Eastern Europe is worth the price of the book.

Rating:
Summary: Tiles for modern tastes....
Review: These days, many of us are becoming reacquainted with the art of our parents or grandparents...not the clunky Victorian stuff, but the wonderful jazzy "art" of the "nouveau." Sometimes I wonder why we ever got away from it, but I suspect two world wars and an economic depression in the 20th century played a big role.

In this lovely historical overview of the Art Nouveau period of tilemaking, Hans van Lemmen provides many up-close examples of individual decorative tiles, as well as 'in situ' photographs of the architectural designs employing these tiles. He begins by describing the Art Nouveau movment itself, which he says can be traced to various sources including the negative reaction to neoclassicism by various 19th Century artists and intellectuals. Some of them felt neoclassical art was pagan and wanted to return to a Gothic or Christian theme. Others reacted to the commercial and industrial use of the neoclassical and wanted to return to a naturalistic theme. In addition, Western artists during this period were heavily influenced by Japanese, Chinese and Indonesian art, which they incorporated into their work. It should surprise no one that one example Van Lemmen provides is a tile executed about 1900 which shows yellow and orange sunflowers (ala Van Gogh who died in 1890).

The book covers the major Art Nouveau centers. The section on Northern Europe (heavy emphasis on France where the movement may have begun) shows salon panels in private homes and other interior applications; Central Europe (especially Bohemia and Hungary) shows many exterior applications; Southern Europe, which features some of the Art Nouveau maiolica found in Barcelona; and the "New World" which includes the Bayard Building on Bleeker Street in New York City designed by Louis Sullivan (Chicago School of Architecture). Many of Van Lemmen's photographs include "fantastical" designs depicting nature, mythology, and abstract decorative subjects. Overall, this book is an informative introduction to the topic of Art Nouveau tiles and their uses and the section on Eastern Europe is worth the price of the book.