Catalogue published in conjunction with the exhibition "Extravagant Inventions: the Princely Furniture of the Roentgens" on view at The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, from October 30, 2102, through January 27, 2013.
Art Deco was a major decorative style of the 1920s - the perfect expression of the extravagance of Paris during that decade. Renowned for its opulence and exclusiveness, Art Deco embraced every area of the decorative arts, including furniture, jewelry, painting and graphics, bookbinding, glass, and ceramics, and was the last coherent decorative style to emerge from Europe during this century. The 1925 Exposition des Arts Décoratifs et Industriels Moderne, from which the style took its name, united the work of the finest French artists in a dazzling display of luxury. Its creators were primarily painters and sculptors who employed highly skilled craftsmen to execute their designs in rare and exotic materials such as figured woods, precious tones and metals, glass and ivory, favoring strong and vibrant colors. This book offers a broad insight into the splendor of this most lavish of decorative styles, as seen in the work of its leading French exponents. Their elegant creations are brought together in this handsome and profusely illustrated volume, which includes much material not previously published. The author's intimate knowledge of many private collections around the world enables him to share a privileged insight into the finest hand-craftsmanship of the time. Also discussed are important Art Deco themes, including the animalier tradition and the cult of the beautiful sophisticated woman. In addition there is a special section of biographies of more than 120 artists.
Why has jewellery and body adornment often been marginalized in studies of modernist art and design? This study explores the relationship between jewellery, modernism and modernity from the 'jazz age' to the second world war in order to challenge the view that these portable art forms have only a minor role to play in histories of modernism. From the masterworks of the Parisian jewellery houses to the film and photography of Man Ray, this study seeks to present jewellery in a new light, where issues of representation and display are considered to be as important in the creation of a modern 'jewellery culture' as the objects themselves. Drawing on material from museums, archives, contemporary journals, memoirs, literary and theoretical texts, this study shows how the emergence of modern jewellery began to seriously question conventional notions of body adornment.