ART DECO

WHAT IS ART DECO:

 Art Deco, sometimes referred to as Deco, is a style of

visual arts, architecture and design that first appeared in
France just before World War I. Art Deco influenced the
design of buildings, furniture, jewellery, fashion, cars,
movie theatres, trains, ocean liners, and everyday
objects such as radios and vacuum cleaners. It took its
name, short for Arts Décoratifs, from the Exposition
Internationale des Arts Décoratifs et
IndustrielsModernes (International Exhibition of Modern
Decorative and Industrial Arts) held in Paris in 1925. It
combined modernist styles with fine craftsmanship and
rich materials. During its heyday, Art Deco represented
luxury, glamour, exuberance, and faith in social and
technological progress.
DEFINITION OF ART DECO:

 a style of decorative art developed

originally in the 1920s with a revival in
the 1960s, marked chiefly by geometric
motifs, curvilinear forms,
sharply defined outlines, often bold
colors, and the use of synthetic
materials, as plastics. Expand. Also
called deco,Deco.
INFLUENCES OF ART DECO:
 Based on geometric shapes and stylized
natural forms, Art
Deco was influenced by
the art movements cubism, futurism,
and functionalism. The style was not
restricted to fine and decorative arts,
however; it influenced product design,
interior decoration, fashion, and
architecture as well.
Art Deco Examples:
 Some of the best example
include the Municipal
Theatre, a beautifully
streamlined structure with
columns and lintels
betraying Egyptian
influences and, inside,
striking nautical light fittings
with neon and tubular laps,
a colorfully patterned
Thirties-style carpet and a
pair of wall panels of
leaping female nudes
(women’s liberation was a
popular motif).
 Others include the
County Hotel, a
gem with stained-
glass windows and
Thirties-style
furnishings.
 Close to the still-active port is the National
Tobacco Company Building, another bold
statement of Art Deco style – in this case
infused exceptionally with ornate grape,
rose and bulrush flourishes evocative of the
earlier Art Nouveau style
 The resort of Miami
Beach contains a
massive Art Deco
district, the largest in
the world.
 New York
Some of the world’s
most recognisable Art
Deco buildings can be
found in New York.
The Empire State
Building, constructed
in 1931 and the tallest
building in the world
for 40 years, is
perhaps the most well
known.
 Chrysler Building,
the American
International
Building, the Bank of
New York Building,
The Century, and
the Waldorf- Astoria
Hotel
 Chicago
Other US cities
containing a large
number of Art Deco
building include
Chicago. The Chicago
Board of Trade Building
(picture) is one of the
most imposing. Others
are the Adler
Planetarium and the
Civic Opera House.
 Detroit
The largest city in
Michigan – Detroit –
can also boast several
examples, including
the Fisher Building
and the Guardian
Building (pictured),
known for its dramatic
interior. Its nickname
is ‘The Cathedral of
Finance’
 Los Angeles
Art Deco architecture
can be found throughout
Los Angeles City Hall
(pictured), built in 1928,
is one of the oldest
example. Other include
the LA Times Building,
Sunset Tower, the
Crossroads of the World
shopping mall, and
dozens of movie
theatres.
 The Hoover Dam
One of the most unusual
example of Art Deco
architecture is the Hoover
Dam. Built between 1931
and 1936, the project was
assisted by California-
based Gordon B.
Kaufmann, the man
responsible for the LA
times Building. He applied
an Art Deco style to many
aspects of the construction,
including the interiors.
 London
Hoover Buildings
 Broadcasting
House, the
headquarters of the
BBC on Portland
Place, is another.
Completed in 1934 it
contains several
flourishes, including
statues of Prospero
and Ariel.
 Battersea Power
Station, Europe’s
largest brick
building.
 Europe, Berlin’s
Mossehaus, the
center for Fine Arts
in Brussels, the Rex
Theatre in Athens,
the Palais de Tokyo
in Paris, and the
Hotrl Astoria in St
Petersburg.
 The Puerto Rican
capital San Juan
(pictured), Manila
and Quezon city in
the Philippines,
Bangkok, Mumbai,
and Asmara in
Eritrea
 Metropolitan
Theater, Manila
 UST Central
Seminary, Manila
ART DECO ARCHITECT:  (January 25, 1901 – June 14, 1975) was a Filipino
architect. A pioneer of modern Philippine architecture
, he was recognized in some quarters as the
foremost Filipino modernist architect of his time. He
was conferred the rank and title of
National Artist of the Philippines by President
Ferdinand Marcos in 1976.
 Antonio first came into prominence in 1933 with the
construction of the Ideal Theater along Avenida Rizal
in Manila. His work caught the eye of the founder of
the Far Eastern University in Manila, Nicanor
Reyes, Sr., who was looking to build a school
campus that was modern in style. Between 1938
and 1950, he designed several buildings on the
Pablo Antonio, Sr. university campus in the Art Deco style. The FEU
campus is considered as the largest ensemble of
surviving Art Deco architecture in Manila, and in
2005, it received an Honorable Mention citation from
the UNESCO for the body's 2005 Asia-Pacific
Heritage Awards for Culture Heritage Conservation.
Far Eastern University Building, Manila
ART DECO HISTORY:
 The Art Deco style is one of the easiest to identify since its sharp-edged looks
and stylized geometrical decorative details are so distinctive.
 The development of this architectural style was an intentional break with past
precedents in an effort to embody the ideas of the modern age. It was the first
American architectural style to look forward rather than back, as the case with
the preceding revival styles. Some architectural historians refer to the Art Deco
style as "Modernistic" leading to some confusion between Art Deco style
buildings and Art Moderne style buildings, both of which can be described as
Modernistic.
 Since the Art Deco and Art Moderne styles are distinctively different in
appearance, each style is described separately in this field guide. Both styles
were part of the Modern Movement in architecture in the early 20th century, a
conscious break with past revival precedents in architecture.
 The Art Deco style first gained public attention in 1922 in a design competition
for the Chicago Tribune Headquarters. Finnish architect Eliel Saarinen
submitted an Art Deco design that was not chosen, but was widely publicized
and embraced as an exciting new architectural style. In 1925 the Exposition
des Arts Decoratifs in Paris further promoted the popularity of Art Deco style
architecture, as well as Art Deco inspired jewelry, clothing, furniture and
handicrafts.
 Art Deco buildings have a sleek, linear appearance with stylized,
often geometric ornamentation. The primary façade of Art Deco
buildings often feature a series of set backs that create a stepped
outline.Low-relief decorative panels can be found at entrances,
around windows, along roof edges or as string courses.
 Art Deco buildings feature distinctive smooth finish building
materials such as stucco, concrete block, glazed brick or mosaic
tile. Decorative details can incorporate various artistic or exotic
motifs to suit the building's function or the architect's whim.
Chevrons, zigzags, and other geometrical motifs are common
forms of ornament on Art Deco style buildings.
 Since the Art Deco style was seen as a rejection of historic
precedents in its use of new construction technology, it was
particularly suitable for the design of the 20th century's newly
emerging building form, the skyscraper
 In Pennsylvania Art Deco style buildings may be found in a variety
of forms from tall urban skyscrapers to smaller scale buildings,
such as post offices, theaters, schools, armories, and apartment
buildings. Movie theaters of the 1920s and 30s often incorporated
Art Deco design throughout the buildings from the curving lines of
the exterior to the stylized décor of the interior curtains, murals and
light fixtures. Some WPA (Works Progress Administration) designed
buildings of this era are of the Art Deco style as well.
 The Warner Theater in Erie has a dramatic Art Deco style marquee
and interior details. The Prospect Middle School in Pittsburgh is
one of several Art Deco inspired school buildings in Pittsburgh
designed by the architectural firm of Steen & Sons.
 The Hamburg Armory in Hamburg Borough, Berks County has a
strongly geometrical Art Deco front façade. Numerous examples of
Art Deco style upscale apartment buildings can be found in urban
settings.
 Other commonly found Art Deco buildings are post offices and
government offices, which often feature stylized eagles or other
national symbols. The State Liquor Control Board Building in
Harrisburg is one such example with oversize eagles flanking the
main entrance.