Art deco is a movement in the decorative arts and architecture, which originated in the 1920s and developed into a major style throughout Europe and the United States. It is a design that represents modernism turned into fashion. The overall intention was to create something that was sleek with an anti-traditional elegance, which symbolized the wealth and sophistication of the age of the Roaring Twenties. Lalique furniture is just one example of this unique style.
While this style died out for a time over the course of World War II, it was revived as a style in the 1960s, which meant a lot of copycat pieces entering the marketplace. If this unique style is appealing or you think you may have inherited an Art Deco furniture piece, here are 4 main characteristics to look out for and how to ensure your is an original.
4 Characteristics of Art Deco
The distinguishing features of Art Deco include:
- Simple, clean shapes
- Ornamentation that is geometric or stylized from representational forms
- Varied and sometimes expensive materials
- Combination of man-made materials and natural ones
There are a variety of ways that these characteristics can show up in an Art Deco furniture piece. If you have a piece of furniture that has these characteristics, you might be thinking that it is an Art Deco piece. However, there are plenty of scams and fake Art Deco pieces out there. So how can you tell if the furniture piece you own is an Art Deco piece?
How to Tell If It Is Art Deco?
The first thing you should be looking at is the materials making up your furniture piece. Art Deco is luxurious, and the materials typically used in these pieces are wood, lacquer, marble, and metal. In addition, they have geometric and bold colors, allowing their beauty to shine.
If the Art Deco furniture piece is made of wood, likely that wood is exotic and not a domestic wood. Remember, an exotic wood adds to the luxury and uniqueness of these pieces. The material choices were meant to showcase the hard work that went into creating them, as well as guarantee that they would last for years to come.
Art Deco furniture pieces also come in a variety of furniture types, including chairs, cabinets, coffee tables, and more. They were luxurious and meant to bring a high level of grace and style to homes and offices.
There are also some pieces that were more frequently created than others. The cocktail table with a glass top and metal legs was one of these common pieces, meant to draw the eye of visitors and be a great conversation starter.
wwwxxxtubewwwxxxtubewwwxxxtube
Clearly, finding a original Art Deco piece means looking for those unique details. You can also find out who the designer was and look for any documents that prove the origin of the piece of furniture. If there is minor damage to your Art Deco furniture, it is worth the investment to have it repaired. If you look for these things in your furniture, then you can determine if your piece is Art Deco furniture.
If you are interested in a Art Deco piece or Lalique lighting, contact our team to explore the different options available.
Paul Stamati Gallery specializes in 20th Century decorative arts and is the world’s leading source for Art Deco lighting by Lalique.