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Art Nouveau: discover all the charm and refinement of art nouveau jewelry

Art Nouveau : a movement within a movement

It is in the heart of the Belle Epoque that Art Nouveau was born. This very short period began in the 1890s and ended in the 1910s.
Art Nouveau was a break with the Belle Epoque and represented a movement of opposition and protest. In a context of technological innovations, of great cultural and artistic period, the Art Nouveau jewels represent a revolution, while the Belle Epoque jewels are in the continuity of the jewels of the 19th century, marked by industrialization: classic, symmetrical and very stoned jewels.

Art Nouveau was influenced by the symbolist movement that began at the end of the 19th century, as well as by the Japanese style, which was very different from that of previous years. The artists of the movement set themselves the mission of putting Nature back at the center of art.

The Art Nouveau style

The Art Nouveau style is a style of rupture. One will thus privilege the asymmetry, the curves, the arabesques, the tendrils... so much so that it will be qualified of "style nouille".

Breaking with the society of the time, it frees the woman from her corsets. It represents her the hair untied, wavy, natural, in soft clothes, veils, and we no longer hide her forms.
The natural themes are very successful. There are many open flowers, animals, birds or even fantastic and mythological creatures.

From the point of view of materials, the work of the metal is precise: the yellow gold is matte, satiny and very worked. Few precious stones were used, but fine stones such as moonstone, opal... or natural materials such as enamel, horn or pearls were used.

The artists of the time created many brooches, pendants, necklaces, but earrings were very rare.

The style is very divisive and public opinion is divided: either you love it or you hate it! The artists of Art Nouveau compose unique jewelry signed very worked, colorful, often imposing. But they also create smaller pieces, in several copies, to make their creations more accessible.
The rarity of these jewels makes them even more precious and sought after today!

The famous names of Art Nouveau

At that time, very daring creative artists emerged. Precursors of their art, they knew how to give birth and live a revolutionary current for the time.
We will remember in particular Georges Fouquet, Henri and Paul Vever, but especially René Lalique who was a real revelation of the Art Nouveau movement.

Trained by the jeweler and goldsmith Louis Aucoc, René Lalique mastered the techniques of jewelry with great skill. A master of glasswork, he was keen to bring back to the forefront materials and gems that had not been used until then: enamel, horn, ivory, coral, opal, jasper and corundum. He exploited all the technical resources of these materials to create works representing natural elements: birds, insects, fish, flowers, fruit...
Very inspired by the Japanese style, he studied Nature tirelessly and made numerous sketches and drawings. Seeking to improve techniques, he would be the inventor of translucent enamel with daylight: this colored enamel that lets the light pass through like a stained glass window.

His remarkable works of a new beauty brought him to the top of his art and he created jewelry for the actress Sarah Bernhardt.