Tea at Trianon: What Is Art Nouveau?

John Wilson Croker on Marie-Antoinette

"We have followed the history of Marie Antoinette with the greatest diligence and scrupulosity. We have lived in those times. We have talked with some of her friends and some of her enemies; we have read, certainly not all, but hundreds of the libels written against her; and we have, in short, examined her life with– if we may be allowed to say so of ourselves– something of the accuracy of contemporaries, the diligence of inquirers, and the impartiality of historians, all combined; and we feel it our duty to declare, in as a solemn a manner as literature admits of, our well-matured opinion that every reproach against the morals of the queen was a gross calumny– that she was, as we have said, one of the purest of human beings."

~from History of the Guillotine by John Wilson Croker, 1844

Edmund Burke on Marie-Antoinette

"It is now sixteen or seventeen years since I saw the queen of France, then dauphiness, at Versailles; and surely there never lighted on this orb, which she hardly seemed to touch, a more delightful vision. I saw her just above the horizon, decorating and cheering the elevated sphere she had just begun to move in, glittering like a morning star full of life and splendor and joy. Oh, what a revolution....Little did I dream that I should have lived to see such disasters fall upon her, in a nation of gallant men, in a nation of men of honor and of cavaliers! I thought ten thousand swords must have leaped from their scabbards, to avenge even a look which threatened her with insult. But the age of chivalry is gone; that of sophisters, economists, and calculators has succeeded...."

~Edmund Burke, October 1790

Thursday, February 17, 2022

What Is Art Nouveau?

From ArchDaily:

Emerged in a period marked by the development of the industry and the experimentation of new materials, the Art Nouveau artistic movement was opposed to historicism, favoring originality and a return to handicrafts. In this context, it is portrayed as an attempt at dialogue between art and industry, revaluing beauty and making it available to everyone through series production.
n force between 1880 and 1920, Art Nouveau was born in Belgium – outside the artistic avant-garde circuit – and was inspired by nature with the sinuous and asymmetrical lines of flowers and animals. Its application reverberated mainly in the design of interiors, products, fabrics, clothes, jewelry and accessories. Regarding the architecture itself, the “materials of the modern world” such as iron, glass and cement are considered, allied to the praise of the rationality of science and engineering. Traits that denote care with the idea of industrialization by the bourgeoisie.
Although Art Nouveau developed in different ways in the regions where it was inserted, some characteristics predominate in the works of the period, such as the use of organic forms; of asymmetric lines; the concern with aesthetics and with the decorative elements; presence of stained glass windows and mosaics and structures inspired by Rococó and Baroque.
Within architecture, one of its most famous exponents is the Catalan Antoni Gaudí who, despite relating Art Nouveau with other movements such as neo-Gothic, in his projects it is possible to perceive the prevalence of natural, asymmetrical and rounded shapes, with clear inspiration in the nature, as is the case of Casa Batlló. In it, the architect explores spatialities, patterns and fluid colors, resulting in a volume that abruptly contrasts with the rigid surroundings. These bold forms by Gaudí represent the essence of Art Nouveau, marked by innovative and unusual creations, so much so that in literal translation it means “new art”. (Read more.)