posted on October 22, 2001 11:41:33 PM
I have wanted to post this question for the longest time. What is ART DECO? In my mind, Art Deco was a modern design that featured curved outlines along with diagonials and geometric lines and lasted from about 1928 to about 1948-1950. Art Deco also incorporated lots of chrome in many of the designs. Please correct me if I'm wrong on this.
I was looking in the clock category and have seen so many, either ill informed or keyword spammers in this category. If you look in this catagory you will find people listing clocks that are from the 1970's as being Deco. A common one might be the yellow flower clock from the 1970's. They might have a modern design in them, but they are not Deco. Some even say that their clock might be Ames Era and Deco combined. Some have a 1950's modern design and are being called Deco. The one that really irked me was the ebayer who was (about 6 months ago) selling a 1970's Macrame plant hanger and was calling it Art Deco. If I find anymore of this I'm going to heave!
posted on October 22, 2001 11:51:46 PM
Another one is the seller who uses the word OLD in the title. You read the description, look at the picture and find the item is from the early 1970's era. Well I guess if your're 25 and selling on ebay, then you were born in 1976. An item from early 1970's could be considered OLD!
posted on October 23, 2001 03:35:35 AM
You gave a very good and concise definition of art deco. However, on ebay you will find things called by names nobody can even imagine.
Some are just blatant keyword use, some are by people who have no idea what they have and some are various items that are hard to identify.
I am doing my aunt's estate now and I know it dates from 1900-1964. That's a large time frame and I try to do a lot of research but some items are just hard to date.
I wish it were all art deco and art nouveau, at least I could identify that easily!
posted on October 23, 2001 06:23:07 AM
I buy and sell items from the Arts and Crafts period (about 1890-1920) and have seen things listed as "Art and Crafts Art Deco" for a long time. I've also seen items listed as "Art Deco Nouveau." I think because all 3 names have the word "art" as part of the label, people get confused.
Don't forget, too, that these periods had no definitive begin or end dates, so you will sometimes see an Art Nouveau piece that exhibits Arts and Crafts details. A good example is Knox-designed Tudric pewter for Liberty and Company in London.
You can also find Arts and Crafts pieces that have certain Deco characteristics, like 20's- and 30's-era Rookwood pottery from Cincinnati.
I do agree, however, that nothing post-WWII should be called Arts and Crafts, Art Nouveau or Art Deco.
As Lily Tomlin once said, "do you realize that one day bean bag chairs will be antiques?" That day has arrived if you're 20-something years old.
posted on October 23, 2001 08:07:49 AM
art deco /art nouveau revival,the europeans are fond of making macintosh jewelry,clocks etc today.why cant people buy a new art deco artnouveau style items which are new and mint and well made?
posted on October 23, 2001 08:17:11 AM
A short answer.
Design is defined by periods of time and design styles and elements. Design movements, (periods of time), are not the same as design styles that incorporate design elements from a design period or movement.
The time period between WWI and WWII is generally accepted as Moderne. From the 1925 Paris Exposition des Arts Decoratifs et Industriels Modernes. The term Art Deco is an abbreviation coined as shorthand by historian Bevis Hiller in 1968. ("Arts Deco"ratifs). The term Art Deco has become the definition for design styles from the Moderne period, replacing Moderne that was used up until the 1960's.
The time period after World War II is most often referred to as the Post-Modernist Movement.
The style of objects made after WWII that incorporates Moderne (Art Deco) design elements are often referred to as Post Moderne,(and a whole bunch of other definitions.)
This is not a complete answer. Purist believe that only objects designed and produced during the Moderne (Art Deco) period should be described using the term Art Deco. There is no absolute accepted definition to differentiate between the use of the terms Art Deco and Post Moderne design after WWII.
Get more than 2 design historians in the same room and you can count on a heated argument.
[ edited by smw on Oct 23, 2001 08:21 AM ]
posted on October 23, 2001 11:48:04 AM
I occasionally "slip" and use Art Moderne in auction listings instead of Art Deco ...because I'm old enough to remember when most people did call it that.
As a "key" for people unfamiliar with the term[s], I might refer to the design of the Chrysler Building in my auction listing. Almost everybody is familiar with that icon and it pinpoints the style very well.
I dread the day when I have something genuinely "Bauhaus" in style to sell...finding a way of describing it so that non-art-historians or architects will know what I mean is gonna be a problem!
posted on October 24, 2001 04:06:06 PM
There is ART DECO and art deco style-unfortunatly some dealers don't bother to tell you which is which-True DECO went out with the start of WW2- Anything else is Modern or Deco style or Deco repro-Buyer Beware-
posted on October 24, 2001 07:05:46 PM
"Well I guess if your're 25 and selling on ebay, then you were born in 1976. An item from early 1970's could be considered OLD!"
Sounds like you are from pre-70's, and don't like to be called OLD.
My entry was about an item from 1970, and a person being born in 1976. It does not pinpoint any certain individual. It's only an opinion, and not a fact about certain items and age groups.
I could respond to that reply by making a negative remark about you. However, the Community Guidelines prohibit it.
From the CG's:
8.5. Breach. You will breach this Agreement if you:
a) Harassment. Harass, threaten, or intimidate another member, or AuctionWatch Moderators or staff. During debate or disagreement, always address the issue at hand, not the individual.
P.S. Actually, I'm a person from the 1950's, and with many people of my age, comes a certain amount of wisdom in the many different aspects of life.
