Modernism & Art Deco

Report Paper

History of Graphic Design
Razan El Hout & Sherine Karout

What is Modernism? Modernism is a up-to-date philosophical movement, founded in the Western Society, specifically Latin America; Mexico, Scandinavia and other places, during the early 19th till the early 20th centuries that sought towards innovative and upgraded ways to change their atmospheres.

What helped modernism to develop was the fact that it happened during the industrial revolution. The movement prohibited enlightenment thinking as well as religious beliefs. All fields relating to activities and designs were developing in a new modern way. Domains such as: architecture, literature, religion and faith. Poet Ezra Pound, was a touch stone towards what it saw as the new obsolete culture of the past. By 1930, popular culture entered along with the stream of Modernism. Defining popular culture as the wholeness of ideas, viewpoints, outlooks, memes, images and other phenomena that are within the majority of a given culture, especially Western culture of the early to mid 20th C. This term traditionally has denoted the education and the general culture of the lower classes, meaning everything was mass-produced. An important alteration happened during this period was the collaboration of modern production/technology into our daily lives. Examples such as, electricity, the telephone, the automobile and the need to do other fixes and changes with them. They felt they have to promote in order to sell more products; it was more of a need for them. Typography throughout most of the 20th century can be seen as a lengthy response to principles stated by early European Modernists such as Jakob Erbar, Rudolf Koch, and Paul Renner, whose typefaces set the direction in the 1920s. The century started with the search for universal pure form and perfection and ended with an awareness of the interesting possibilities to be found in violating that perfection. A Visual Set is a book that uses typography as the unifying discipline through which to comprehend, evaluate, and relate forms; these are the forms in Modernism. There is a “visual landscape” of periods of design, where we can distinguish a pervasive tendency in all the design arts to handle forms in similar ways, also called a Visual Set.

The early modern European typefaces were imitated and directly copied by many type founders, both in Europe and United States. Changes were made from time to time to the original design and to the name. Futura could become “Airport” or “Spartan” and Kabel, or Cable, was generically called “Sans Serif.”

Forms appeared in the Modern period, identified some actions on form such as: stripping, fragmenting, compressing and elongating. Modernism rejected “meaning” in form in favor of principles of form. Modernism omits some period of design that offers abundant examples of form. Which are Art Nouveau and the Vienna Workshop. Art Nouveau is today seen as a limited style of a limited period, one that looked back to the 18th century as a decorative source.

During the years 1910 – 1939 Art Deco, parallel to the streamline movement, was given to the “modern”, but not Modernist, 20th century style that came to worldwide prominence in the inter-war years and left its mark on nearly every visual medium, from fine arts, architecture and interior design to fashion and textiles, film and typography. Another word for Art Deco would be “modernized traditionals”.

Part of the fascination of the style lies precisely in its confrontation of new values with old ones. However, contemporary artists doubted that Art Deco was a style at all. The critical re-evolution of which Art Deco today is the object can’t deny that it consists more of a taste than a style and this is also responsible for the slippery way it resists theoretical categorization. On the other hand, Art Deco’s first Chronic, Bevis Hillier, confidently asserted: “ with justice, we can describe it as the last of the total styles.”

Further more the term Art Deco not only has currency among specialists and enthusiasts but, unusually for a style label, it has resonance for a large lay public. Many people correctly associate the label with the inter-war years and can name examples of Deco designers such as Rne Lalique or Clarice Cliff. If you observe the work of Art Deco designers you will witness the strong reference to historical western high styles and those inspired by ‘exotic’ non-western traditions, those inspired by the far past, and those inspired by contemporary Avante-Garde art.

So basically, works that are made meticulously handcrafted, made of rare and luxurious materials, intended for an elite and mass-produced designs, made in new, low-cast materials, aimed t the popular market. Works that embrace naturalistic, geometric or abstract surfaces, decoration and those that have no surface decoration but whose forms are decorative, are different than Art Nouveau.

Art Deco wasn’t only one style it was 10 to 15 styles, and if you look closely, you’ll find a difference. As well as, Art Deco has neither stylistic nor methodological coherence. One can say that Art Deco was eclectic since it combined different techniques and styles, old and contemporary, in ones works. They have a tendency of simplified forms and the absence of 3-D ornaments. Their designs refer symbolically to modern –themes, such as youth, liberates sexuality and mechanical culture, examples such as sunburst zigzags and frozen fountains. The architect Le Corbusier was the first designer to introduce this concept.

Another designer, Bevis Hillier, published a book and named it “Art Deco”, he said and I quote: “ An assertive modern style, developing in the 1920s and reaching its high point in the 1930s .. a classical style in that, like neo-classicism but unlike Rococo or Art Nouveau, it ran to symmetry rather than asymmetry, and to the rectilinear rather curvilinear; it responded to the demands of the machine and of new materials and the requirements of mass production.”

Art Deco used new material: chrome and plastic instead of old ones such as ebony and ivory. After the World War II, the changes were starting to be recognized such as the Chrysler Building and Empire State Building both located in New York City.

Designer Gebhard used the word “streamline modern” to differentiate modern commercial and entertainment buildings from those of “Avante-garde” Modernists. In streamline movement ( which is parallel to Art Deco ) used to illustrate people using the air brush technique and this is where aerodynamics are involved.

Adolphe Mouron Cassandre ( 1901 – 1968). His parents were French, born in Ukraine, he went to Paris to study at the Ecole des Beaux Arts, as well as the Julian Academy. Cassandre’s posters were so good that he was offered a job at a Parisian printing house. He was inspired by cubism as well as surrealism. He then gained fame with his works, one of which is the Bucheron ( woodcutter), a poster created for a cabinet maker that won 1st prize at the 1925 international exposition of Art Decoratifs et Industriels Modernes.

Cassandre was able to set up his own advertising agency with the help of coworkers. The company was called Alliance Graphique. He had creations for the Dubonnet wine company. His company created several new typefaces such as the sans-serif Acier Nour and Peignot. Because he served in the French army during the World War II, his company and career went down the drain.

He then started working by creating set designs and costumes for the theatre. After the war, he continued in this line of work while working on his paintings at the same time. In 1963, he designed the well-known Yves Saint Laurent logo. Then, in 1968, Cassandre committed suicide due to attacks of depression.

In conclusion, Modernism is a philosophical movement, founded in the Western Society, which integrated with Art Deco, which is an eclectic style combining modern, contemporary trend with old ones. Adolphe Mouron Cassandre was the most important designer that contributed to the Art Deco style.