A bookcase with cabinet, 1910s-1920s.
Veneered with mahogany. Movable shelves. Cabinet door with glass. Width 89, depth 31, height 153 cm.
Minor wear. Marks. One shelf inside with minor damage. Keys missing.
Jugend/Art Nouveau is a style dating from around the turn of the 20th century, approximately between 1890 and 1920. The movement emerged as a reaction against the prevailing imitations of historical styles, with the ambition of creating a style for a new era. Its starting point was the Arts and Crafts movement’s ideas about an artistically conceived Gesamtkunstwerk. In Austria, the style corresponded to the Sezession, a group of radical artists. There, it was more geometric in expression. In France and England, the style was known as Art Nouveau, meaning “new art”. Jugend is characterised by flowing lines and vegetatively inspired decoration. Organic, winding plant forms and depictions of nature, fruit, slender female figures and asymmetry were common.
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