Please make clear to me the differences between "Art Deco" and "Art Nouveau" as I remain confused. Thank you for responding to this somewhat unsophisticted question.

-- Dr. Natalie Gordon (gordonduo@aol.com), April 28, 1999

Answers

Dr. Gordon, The Art Nouveau style draws largely from themes found in nature such as plants, flowers, trees, and insects, while the Art Deco style is largely geometrically-oriented in design elements. Art Nouveau also tends to be more asymmetrical with long flowing sinuous lines, and Art Deco is more symmetrical and characterized by repetitive shapes and lines.

While there is some overlap between the two styles in use of flowers and insects, there are differences in the specifics selected. Art Nouveau would use irises and orchids while Art Deco would use camellias and roses (which could be rendered in more of a Cubist form). Art Nouveau might rely on insects such as dragonflies and spiders - perhaps due to the lingering fascination with Darwin's classification of animals in the 1850's. Art Deco artisans used animals such as leaping gazelles and racing greyhounds to convey a sense of speed and power to emphasize the recent technological accomplishments in aviation and automotive engineering.

Hope this helps - feel free to ask for more. I had written an article on the Evolution of Art Deco Style Jewelry which compares and contrasts Art Nouveau and Art Deco in more detail.

-- Tony Wilner, Deputy Preservation Committee Chair (twverve@aol.com), May 09, 1999.

i am an art student in belfast and i am doing my a-level art and design project on art deco and nature. i would be grateful for any information you may ave, it doesnt have to be anything to do with Art nouveau. thankyou for any help you may be abvle to offer me.

-- FIONA CROSSETT (DISCODIVIS@TALK21.COM), January 16, 2001.

send me a picture of Art Nouveau and Art Deco to the differences, please.

-- alidastmalchi (aliadastmalchi@aol.com), November 16, 2003.