First comes a preamble. And, in the middle of it, these vibrant words: "The 19th century’s decorative deficiency had no cause other than the divorce generated by the ruin of the guilds between artists and manufacturers, these two categories of citizens whose union engendered fertility and whose discord led to impotence. This has finally changed. Every day, these close relationships are reforged and strengthened between model designers and manufacturers, which pave the way to the resurrection of working methods giving rise to modernity. The era of the most marvelous discoveries that have revolutionized our ways and standards of life is finally seeing architecture and applied arts on a par with its civilization.”

Further on, another contributor added these few lines: “'Our century has no forms,’ wrote the author of The Confession of a Child of the Century [Musset – Ed.]. ‘We have not put the stamp of our times on our houses, nor on our gardens, nor on anything else (…).’ Luckily, what was true in 1836 ceased to be true in 1925. France has ‘gotten its own place,’ in a manner of speaking. It has its art, in relation to the progress of science, new materials, uses and customs of today.”

These two quotations clearly express the purpose of the 1925 exhibition, the 100th anniversary of which we will celebrate in a little over a year: to promote modern decorative and industrial arts, showcasing innovative styles and new techniques. This event would lend its name to the flagship movement of the time, Art Deco, a style driven by the technological revolutions of the late 19th century and early 20th century.

These developments were so numerous that listing them all is quite a challenge. There was, of course, reinforced concrete and the use of glass in architecture, but let us focus on the part that most interests us here: interior decor.  This means we can talk about the sliced veneers that made it possible to unroll very large sheets of wood veneer – not previously possible using their sawn elders –, leading to spectacular achievements in interior architecture, millwork, and furniture. We should also cite lacquerware, copied in Europe for centuries, but revolutionized by workers from Southeast Asia who came to France during World War I to work on airplanes. The leather industry, too, was transformed by the aftermath of World War I.  

Metal, another material essential to Art Deco, was made less expensive through industrialization and began to be seen in interiors, such as on furniture. And we could list numerous other materials, some rediscovering popularity in the 1920s after having somewhat sunk into oblivion, such as shagreen, parchment, or straw marquetry. Art Deco, whether mass produced or luxuriously handcrafted, was a global movement, infiltrating all levels of society and influencing the use of the finest and humblest materials.

Only twelve months remain before the 100th anniversary of Opening Day of the International Exhibition of Modern Decorative and Industrial Arts in April 1925. Over the course of the coming year, our website will publish a series of articles looking back on Art Deco, on the role that Rinck had in and on this movement, as well as on the techniques, projects, and creations related thereto. It serves as a superb playground for us, a chance to bring out our archives, admire the survival of a protean style and techniques that are still very up-to-date. This month, we will focus on a form of material craftsmanship that was quite popular in the Art Deco era and has been making a comeback in recent years: gouged wood.