Art Deco Lamps and Art Deco in general.

In 1925, a group of French artists in Paris organized a world exhibition under the name: “Exposition Internationale des Arts Décoratifs et Industriels Modernes”. The aim was to show the leading position of French decorative art to the world. Later, around 1970, the name "Art Deco" was derived from this event by art historian Bevis Hillier.

Art Deco was a popular, international style movement from about 1920 to about 1940. It influenced areas such as architecture, interior design and industrial design. And certainly also the domains of fashion, painting, graphic art and film. Many consumer products, such as furniture, porcelain, lamps, jewelry, watches and also cars, were designed in this style.

At the time, this style was seen as elegant, glamorous (luxury), functional, and modern. The movement was an eclectic mix of many different styles from the early 20th century (including cubism, modernism, futurism and Art Nouveau). It can also partly be seen as a reaction to the round, organic shapes of Art Nouveau.

Art Deco had no further philosophical or political approach like many other styles did. It was purely meant to be beautiful, decorative. The USA also had a strong Art Deco movement. The Empire State Building and the Chrysler Building in New York are two well-known examples of buildings in this style.

Shapes and Materials

The ability to travel and the excavations (for instance Egypt, Tutankhamun, 1922) of the time influenced artists and designers. They integrated elements from countries they visited in their (art) works. This includes the "primitive art" from Africa, Ancient Egypt and the structures of the Aztecs.

Materials used: glass, aluminium, chrome, bakelite, polished stone, marble, enamel, lacquerware, inlaid woodwork and also exotic materials such as shark skin, zebra skin and silk.

Of course many more materials were used. The consistent appearance of the designs was: luxury, functional and modern.

Shapes used: clean and straight lines, geometric shapes (staircase, trapeze, zig zag), sun rays, symmetrical patterns, repetition, Asian influences (think of the use of silk and lacquer, among others), patterns from the Middle East.

Decorative elements such as animals, bouquets and female figures stylized and quite angular, often combined with geometric patterns.

Art Deco Lamps

In addition to the incandescent lamp, the fluorescent tube made its appearance in the 1930s. The straight line of this new form of lighting fitted well within Art Deco. For this reason, the fluorescent tube at that time found its way to hanging and standing luminaires.

Art Deco Buildings can be found all over the world

Art Deco buildings can really be found all over the world; we give a few examples: · Miami Beach (largest collection in the world) · Cuba, especially in Havana (the Bacardi building) · London, the metro · Indonesia, in Java and in Bandung · New Zealand, in Napier · Mumbai in India · Brazil; the Christ statue in Rio de Janeiro (the largest art deco object in the world)