Sexy, modern, and unabashedly consumer-oriented, Art Deco was a new kind of style, flourishing at a time of rapid technological change and social upheaval

Lacking the philosophical basis of other European design movements, Deco borrowed motifs from numerous sources - Japan, Africa, ancient Egyptian and Mayan cultures, avant-garde European art--simply to create novel visual effects.

Art Deco 1910-1939 surveys the sources and development of the popular style with more than 400 colour illustrations and 40 chapters by numerous design specialists. The authors track Deco around the globe, from Paris to the United States - where it got its biggest boost from mass production - to Northern and Central Europe, Latin America, Japan, India, and New Zealand.

The book's broad focus encompasses industrial artefacts (the Hindenburg blimp, the Burlington Zephyr locomotive), as well as architecture, furniture, accessories, fashion, jewellery, typography and poster design. Despite the existence of other prominent artistic movements during the 1920s and '30s, the authors tend to hang the Deco label on virtually any object that portrays the effects of technology or employs colour, luxury materials or artificial light in striking ways. It does seem a stretch to include Man Ray's photographs, Sonia Delaunay's textiles and the movie King Kong in the Deco pantheon. But the great strength of Art Deco 1910-1939 is that it reveals the social context of Deco, not just its pretty face.
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‘The best book on Art Deco to have appeared so far, and likely to remain so.’ Bevis Hillier, Literary Review

Art Deco – the style redolent of the flapper girl, the luxury ocean liner, Hollywood film and the skyscraper – came to epitomize the glamour, luxury and hedonism of the Jazz Age. It burst on to the world stage at the 1925 Exposition internationale des art decoratifs et industriels modernes in Paris, and quickly swept across the globe. Its influence was felt everywhere, from the skylines of New York and Shanghai to the design of fashionable eveningwear and plastic radios. Above all, it became the signature style of the pleasure palaces of the age – hotels, cocktail bars, nightclubs and cinemas.

This authoritative publication brings together leading experts to explore the sources, varied forms of expression, distinct visual language and global reach of Art Deco. With its breathtaking illustrations, this lavish volume is the definitive book on what is, arguably, the most popular style of the twentieth century.

About the Authors

Charlotte Benton is an independent architecture and design historian. Her publications include A Different World? E´migre´ Architects in Britain, 1928–1958 (1995).

Tim Benton is Professor of Art History at the Open University. He has also co-curated a number of exhibitions, including Thirties: British Art and Design before the War (1979) and Art and Power (1996).

Ghislaine Wood is a Senior Curator in the V&A’s Research Department. She was curator of touring exhibition Art Deco 1910– 1939 (2003) and deputy curator of the major exhibition Art Nouveau 1890–1914 (V&A 2000).

310 color & 34 b/w color photos

Art Deco brings to mind a glamorous era of brilliant architecture, striking interior design, elegant furniture, and superb objets d'art. The term evokes an era of the 1920s and 1930s that prized elegant design elements combined with exotic materials, subtle colors, and the finest workmanship.

Ferdinand Preiss (1882-1943) was the most prolific sculptor of the Art Deco period in Germany; he combined ivory, bronze, onyx and marble to create the most dazzling sculptures of his day.

Preiss entered into an apprenticeship with his uncle, a master ivory carver, at the age of sixteen, following the death of his parents. He went on to become the most important Art Deco sculptor in Germany and, indeed one of the most accomplished in the whole of Europe, during the Nazi period.

This book, the only work devoted entirely to this subject, follows the development of ivory carving in Erbach, Germany, focusing on the life and work of one of the country's most talented and prodigious sons. The political climate which Preiss and other artists were forced to endure during this time, its difficulties, constraints and influences on their work, is also explored. Extensive research into Nazi archives, interviews with family members, recently unearthed documents and the most comprehensive collection of sumptuous colour illustrations, truly enable the extraordinary talents of this formidable artist to shine.

The dramatic 1925 Paris Exhibition heralded the emergence of the Art Deco movement as a great decorative style. The photographs in this book were originally published in three volumes to show the rooms furnished for the exhibition. These original books are now extremely rare and expensive.

This classic work reproduces duotone plates from original volumesfirst published in 1926 to illustrate the rooms furnished for the 1925 ParisExposition des Arts Décoratifs which launched the Art Deco movement. The rooms display a treasure trove of original features, including carpets, lighting, wall hangings and classic quality furniture of the period. Amongthe interiors illustrated are grand reception rooms, bedrooms and boudoirs,artists' studios, dining rooms, hallways and a kitchen. Alastair Duncan's scholarly introduction and the detailed documentary captions, which identify the designers, architects and decorators, provide a unique insight into the decorative style of this important period. The book is an essential acquisition for all modern designers, decorators, home furnishers and collectors.

The Author Maurice Dufrêne was a renowned professional decorator, editor of Maîtrise des Galeries Lafayette and president of Class 7 at the prestigious ParisExhibition des Arts Décoratifs. Alastair Duncan is a leading authority on the Art Deco style and has written many books, catalogues and magazine articles on the subject.

In the 1920s, not only were architecture and art influenced by Art Deco, fashion was, too. Designers were inspired by the stage sets of the Ballet Russes, fabric designs and costumes from Leon Bakst and creations from the Wiener Werkstдtte, just to name a few. Women’s increased participation in sports, along with the introduction of energetic dance styles required a different type of dress, and technical advances resulted in the availability of new fabrics. These factors played a role in a true fashion revolution: fashion designers created new silhouettes and innovative details, and used new colours and luxurious fabrics. At least as important was the use of typical Art Deco patterns for textile decoration. Art Deco Fashion contains more than a 1,000 beautiful fashion plates, including designs from famous Art Deco designers such as Paul Poiret, Charles Worth and Jean Patou. The book comes with a free CD containing wonderful Art Deco patterns that have been meticulously restored from period originals.

Art Deco buildings, with their highly ornate façades and dramatic forms, are a vital part of our surroundings.

This wide-ranging exploration of Art Deco architectural design embraces many different times and places in its summary of the movement’s origins, development and influence. Various types of architecture were termed Art Deco, and their antecedents might include Arts and Crafts, fin-de-siècle Vienna, Cubism, Expressionism and the Bauhaus.

Patricia Bayer shows that Art Deco masterpieces can be seen and admired worldwide: from the skyscrapers of New York City to imperial dwellings in Tokyo; from Sydney Harbour Bridge and the Battersea Power Station to movie theatres and diners across America. Post-modernism now uses its motifs and idioms, and many of the original buildings still survive, fully restored to their former glory.

Sumptuously illustrated, this is a comprehensive guide to the best-loved of all 20th-century architectural styles.