Art Nouveau

Art Nouveau (New Art) was a movement that started in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. It is known by various names such as The Glasgow Style or as the Germans had called it Jugendstil. Art Nouveau was an aim at modernising design and to escape the historical styles that had previously been popular. Artists had drew inspiration from nature and geometrical forms. Art Nouveau's characteristics included organic, flowing lines- forms resembling the stems and blossoms of plants - as well as geometric forms such as squares and rectangles.  

Maude Adams as Joan of Arc, 1909 

A good example of an Art Nouveau artist would be Alphonse Mucha. The painting above was painted in Chicago in 1909 this picture depicts the American actress Maude Adams in the role of Joan of Arc. The portrait was made specifically for the one-night gala performance of the play at Harvard and was displayed as a poster for the event. Mucha also designed the costumes and sets and supervised the direction. Afterwards, at the actress' request, the painting served as the lobby poster for the Empire Theater in New York.

Helbrunne Timeline of Art History, 2013. Metmuseum. [online] Available at: <http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/artn/hd_artn.htm>
[Accessed on 28th April 2013]

The Art Story, 2013. [Online] Available at:< http://www.theartstory.org/movement-art-nouveau.htm#>
[Accessed on 28th April 2013] 

Helbrunne Timeline of Art History, 2013. Metmuseum. [online] Available at: <http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/works-of-art/20.33>
[Accessed on 28th April 2013]