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Art Deco (1925 - 1940)
Art Deco was conceived as a style to be modern and elegant. Like all new styles a lot of its substance was inherited
from earlier styles especially twentieth century styles such as Art Nouveau, Futurism, Neo-classical. Modernism and Cubism.
It started at the 'International Exposition of Modern and Decorative Art' in Paris (France) in 1925, when it became known as the Style Moderne or more rarely Art Deco.
A book by Bevis Hillier in 1968 titled 'Art Deco of the Miami Beach' firmly rebranded the Style Moderne as Art Deco. There are numerous examples of Art Deco buildings around the world.
In New York City, the Empire State Building and the Chrysler Building are two of the best-known examples of the style.
Art Deco was a popular international art design movement from 1925 until the 1940s, affecting the decorative arts such as architecture, interior design and industrial design, as well as the visual arts such as fashion, painting, the graphic arts and film. At the time, this style was seen as elegant, glamorous, functional and modern.
The structure of Art Deco is based on mathematical geometric shapes.
It is characterized by use of materials such as aluminum, stainless steel, lacquer and inlaid wood.
The style celebrates the Machine Age through explicit use of man-made materials, particularly glass and stainless steel.
Miami Beach, Florida, has the largest surviving collection of Art Deco buildings in the world, with some thirty blocks of hotels and apartment houses dating from the 1920s to the 1940s.
Los Angeles, California, is also rich in Art Deco architecture, particularly along Wilshire Boulevard.
Some of the finest surviving examples of Art Deco art and architecture are found in Cuba, especially in Havana.
Another country with many examples of rich Art Deco architecture is Brazil, especially in Copacabana.
Napier, New Zealand, was rebuilt in the Art Deco style after being largely razed by the Hawke's Bay earthquake of 3 February 1931. Napier has been nominated for UNESCO World Heritage Site status(2007).
In London, the Arsenal Stadium (1936) boasts the famous East Stand facade. It remains at the football club's old home at Highbury, London Borough of Islington, which was vacated in the summer of 2006. Opened in October 1936, the structure now has Grade II listed status and has been converted into flats. William Bennie, the man behind the project, famously used the Art Deco style in the final design which was seen as one of the most opulent and impressive stands in world football. The London Underground is also famous for many examples of Art Deco architecture.
Mumbai, India has the second largest number of Art Deco buildings in the world after Miami.
In China, at least sixty Art Deco buildings survive in downtown Shanghai.
The Cincinnati Union Terminal, is an Art Deco style passenger railway station that opened in 1933. It now serves as the Cincinnati Museum Center, which welcomes more than one million visitors per year.
Cincinnati is also home to the Carew Tower, a 49-story Art Deco skyscraper built in 1931.
Valencia, Spain built profusely in Art Deco style .
Africa's most celebrated examples of art deco were built in Eritrea during Italian rule.
Finally, one of the most famous surviving examples of the Art Deco style is the famous RMS Queen Mary, which is currently moored in retirement in Long Beach, California as a floating museum and hotel, a true lasting reminder to the past glory of the once numerous transAtlantic ocean liners.
The distinctive style of Art Deco has been echoed in many similar movements since its early decline. Art Deco influenced later styles such as Memphis and the Pop art movement. It also had an effect on post modern architecture and styles, even through to the late 1970s. Art Deco has also had a marked influence on contemporary design.
During the 1930s, Art Deco had a noticeable influence on house design in the United Kingdom and there are still houses built in Art Deco style to-day.
Straight, white-rendered house frontages rising to flat roofs, sharply geometric door surrounds and tall windows, as well as convex curved metal corner windows, were all characteristic of that style.