Art Nouveau

By the late 1800s, art in Europe had taken a decidedly academic turn. To be considered a serious artist individuals had to attend one of the many arts academies. They needed to commit to a rigorous study of line, shape, form and texture with the ultimate goal of producing paintings of idealized figures and landscapes.
And of course, for all the artists who did just that, some thought academic art was rubbish and reacted accordingly. They believed art isn't meant to be studied like science or math. They though art flows through the soul and twists through the consciousness and decorates life with its beauty.
These rebel artists driven to create their own style in the art world were the innovators of the very short but highly influential movement known as art Nouveau. 

Lasting from approx. 1890 to 1910, Art Nouveau which means new art in French moved away from imitation of real subjects and moved towards the flowing and twisting lines and shapes of nature. Art Nouveau contains a lot of what art historians call whiplash curves decorating every available surface.

Due to the opening of foreign relations with Japan, the flowing lines of Japanese woodblock prints became a new inspiration for European artists. The simplicity, muted colours, and rich 2-dimensional imagery, are prominent features of Japanese prints and Art Nouveau design.
Art Nouveau artists were also influenced by the Arts & Crafts Movements' emphasis on hand craftsmanship and the highly expressive paintings of post-impressionists.

Common features or characteristics of Art Nouveau are muted colours like all of green, carnation pink and periwinkle blue, wiving and swirling lines as well as natural imagery.
 All these characteristics can be seen in all different types of work at the time including painting, sculpting, jewellery, architecture, household items and graphics.
 Artists wanted to replace the mishmash of mass produced items, antiques and classical imitations with well made and original decorations and furniture.

 Art Nouveau was the first artistic movement to give serious credibility to the graphic arts, especially the poster as an art form. The immensly popular posters designed by Henri Toulouse-Lautrec for example, contain illustrations and decorative lettering that practically foretells art's later emphasis on graphic design. In addition to posters, art Nouveau's graphics beautified book covers, catalogs and playbills.

 The twisting organnic lines of Art Nouveau can also be found in the paintings and illustrations of Czech artist Alphonse Mucha. His elongated depictions of actresses and fantasy women, decorative advertisements, theater posters and more. Mucha's best known works are a set of decorative panels 'The Seasons' that personifies the seasons as sensuous women that show both character of each season individually aswell as the harmony of seasons throughout the year. Like many other designers at the time, Mucha first captured public notice for poster designs, but he also received commissions for magazine covers, book designs, packages, publicity materials, and even postage stamps. In this way, the role and scope of graphic design activity steadily expanded throughout the period.

Art Nouveau had a great run, and even though it lasted for only 20 years, the work produced during this period made a lasting impression on the art world. Art Nouveau eventually gave way to the more industrial lines of Modernism and more predictable forms of art deco. However, Art Nouveau's prolific form and ornamentation has lasted through today.