Art Books – Art Nouveau

Why I have so many books on Art Nouveau, is beyond my comprehension.

Granted, the era with its multiform artistic expression did fascinate me at one stage of my life and it was resurrected in popular culture during the 1960s and ‘70s along with the Decadents and Symbolists. Books on the subject were plentiful and I obviously bought every one I came across.

These days I prefer the elegant geometric style of Art Deco rather than the often ornate florid style of Art Nouveau. There is an Art Deco exhibition currently running at the Victorian National Gallery which I am looking forward to visiting next Monday.

But back to Art Nouveau, below is my collection of books on the subject.

This one could have been called the Giant Book of Art Nouveau. It covers every aspect of the movement from objet d’art, furniture to architecture and is quite comprehensive.

The following books were published by various discount publishers, at that time bringing culture to the masses. The reproductions are actually quite good, so in buying these books you got value for money.

The next one is by Phillipe Jullian who was an authority on the subject and authored books on the Symbolists and Decadents. He also illustrated the English editions of Proust's Remembrance of Things Past - the C K Scott Moncrieff editions.

Coming next – Decadents and Symbolists