Art Nouveau Exhibitions

The 19th-Century Shift · c. 1890–1910

Nature, ornament, total design

A total design movement that sought to dissolve the boundary between fine and applied art. Inspired by organic forms — flowing plant stems, curving lines, the sinuous silhouette of the female figure — it transformed architecture, furniture, jewellery, and posters into unified artworks. Mucha, Gaudí, and Klimt each gave it a distinct national inflection.