In its sinuous lines and flamboyant curves inspired by the natural world, antique Art Nouveau furniture reflects a desire for freedom from the stuffy social and artistic strictures of the Victorian era. The Art Nouveau movement developed in the decorative arts in France and Britain in the early 1880s and quickly became a dominant aesthetic style in Western Europe and the United States.
ORIGINS OF ART NOUVEAU FURNITURE DESIGN
CHARACTERISTICS OF ART NOUVEAU FURNITURE DESIGN
ART NOUVEAU FURNITURE DESIGNERS TO KNOW
ANTIQUE ART NOUVEAU FURNITURE ON 1STDIBS
Art Nouveau — which spanned furniture, architecture, jewelry and graphic design — can be easily identified by its lush, flowing forms suggested by flowers and plants, as well as the lissome tendrils of sea life. Although Art Deco and Art Nouveau were both in the forefront of turn-of-the-20th-century design, they are very different styles — Art Deco is marked by bold, geometric shapes while Art Nouveau incorporates dreamlike, floral motifs. The latter’s signature motif is the "whiplash" curve — a deep, narrow, dynamic parabola that appears as an element in everything from chair arms to cabinetry and mirror frames.
The visual vocabulary of Art Nouveau was particularly influenced by the soft colors and abstract images of nature seen in Japanese art prints, which arrived in large numbers in the West after open trade was forced upon Japan in the 1860s. Impressionist artists were moved by the artistic tradition of Japanese woodblock printmaking, and Japonisme — a term used to describe the appetite for Japanese art and culture in Europe at the time — greatly informed Art Nouveau.
The Art Nouveau style quickly reached a wide audience in Europe via advertising posters, book covers, illustrations and other work by such artists as Aubrey Beardsley, Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec and Alphonse Mucha. While all Art Nouveau designs share common formal elements, different countries and regions produced their own variants.
In Scotland, the architect Charles Rennie Mackintosh developed a singular, restrained look based on scale rather than ornament; a style best known from his narrow chairs with exceedingly tall backs, designed for Glasgow tea rooms. Meanwhile in France, Hector Guimard — whose iconic 1896 entry arches for the Paris Metro are still in use — and Louis Majorelle produced chairs, desks, bed frames and cabinets with sweeping lines and rich veneers.
The Art Nouveau movement was known as Jugendstil ("Youth Style") in Germany, and in Austria the designers of the Vienna Secession group — notably Koloman Moser, Josef Hoffmann and Joseph Maria Olbrich — produced a relatively austere iteration of the Art Nouveau style, which mixed curving and geometric elements.
Art Nouveau revitalized all of the applied arts. Ceramists such as Ernest Chaplet and Edmond Lachenal created new forms covered in novel and rediscovered glazes that produced thick, foam-like finishes. Bold vases, bowls and lighting designs in acid-etched and marquetry cameo glass by Émile Gallé and the Daum Freres appeared in France, while in New York the glass workshop-cum-laboratory of Louis Comfort Tiffany — the core of what eventually became a multimedia decorative-arts manufactory called Tiffany Studios — brought out buoyant pieces in opalescent favrile glass.
Jewelry design was revolutionized, as settings, for the first time, were emphasized as much as, or more than, gemstones. A favorite Art Nouveau jewelry motif was insects (think of Tiffany, in his famed Dragonflies glass lampshade).
Like a mayfly, Art Nouveau was short-lived. The sensuous, languorous style fell out of favor early in the 20th century, deemed perhaps too light and insubstantial for European tastes in the aftermath of World War I. But as the designs on 1stDibs demonstrate, Art Nouveau retains its power to fascinate and seduce.
There are ways to tastefully integrate a touch of Art Nouveau into even the most modern interior — browse an extraordinary collection of original antique Art Nouveau furniture on 1stDibs, which includes decorative objects, seating, tables, garden elements and more.
Antique French Ormolu Beveled Glass Jewelry Dresser Box
Located in Pearland, TX
A gorgeous antique French gilt brass ormolu beveled glass footed jewelry casket or dresser box with hinged lid and lovely ornate handle. This fine quality box has been newly relined ...
Ormolu
Art Nouveau Casket by Niels Dam Ravn, 1930s, Denmark
By N. Dam Ravn
Located in Værløse, DK
Art Nouveau bronze casket designed by Niels Dam Ravn and produced by Nordisk Malm in the 1930s. * Curvilinear bronze casket with deer motifs and a fitted wooden interior box * Desig...
Brass
WMF Model 131 German Jugendstil Brass and Velvet Jewelry Box, circa 1905
By WMF Württembergische Metallwarenfabrik
Located in West Palm Beach, FL
WMF Model 131 German Jugendstil Brass and Velvet Jewelry Box, circa 1905 A documented German Jugendstil brass jewelry box by WMF (Württembergische Metallwarenfabrik), dating to circ...
Brass
$869Sale Price|20% Off
Lidded Box by Josef Hoffmann for Wiener Werkstätte, 1920s
Located in Purkersdorf, AT
Lidded cigarette tin – handmade. Designed by Josef Hoffmann for the Wiener Werkstätte – no markings (see photo for a comparable object with a signature) – also documented in the MAK ...
Fruitwood
$4,963Sale Price|20% Off
French Art Nouveau Silver Cigarette Case, Early 20th Century
Located in Lisbon, PT
Elegant French Art Nouveau silver cigarette case dating to circa 1900, finely crafted and decorated with the initials M and Z. This antique French cigarette case...
Silver
Antique American Art Nouveau Repousse Sterling Silver Matchsafe or Vesta
Located in Philadelphia, PA
A fine antique signed silver Art Nouveau matchsafe. In sterling silver. With repousse decoration of rocaille swags around the edges of both sides. With a striker to the base. Mar...
Sterling Silver
Art Nouveau Amalric Walter and Henri Bergé pâte-de-verre Insect Covered Box
By Henri Bergé and Amalric Walter
Located in New York, NY
This exquisite Trois Capricornes du Chêne covered box was designed by Amalric Walter and Henri Bergé for La Marquise de Sévigné, the celebrated French luxury chocolatier founded in 1...
Glass
Pair of dogs, terrier, as a lidded box, bronze, 1910, Art Nouveau, Austria
Located in Wien, AT
A charming lidded box in the shape of a pair of dogs—two terriers of different colors—crafted in Austria around 1910. The object is made of solid bronze and features cold-painted de...
Bronze
Trio of Pewter Bonbonnières by Just Andersen, 1920s, Denmark
By Just Andersen, GAB Guldsmedsaktiebolaget
Located in Værløse, DK
Elegant trio of round pewter bonbonnières designed by Just Andersen in the early 1920s. * Set of three (3) round pewter boxes with fitted lids and spherical finials * Designer: Just...
Pewter
1920 English Huntley & Palmers Chinoiserie Jar on Stand Biscuit Tin Box
Located in Chapel Hill, NC
1920 Huntley & Palmers Chinoiserie Jar on Stand Biscuit Tin Box. Faux craquelure glazed "jar" decorated with phoenix birds, rising sun, & flowering bamboo. Great handles & borders. B...
Metal, Tin
Antique English Victorian Tortoiseshell Tea Caddy by Saunders & Shepherd
By Cornelius Desormeaux Saunders and James Francis Hollings Shepherd
Located in Northampton, GB
FREE WORLDWIDE SHIPPING This late Victorian tortoiseshell tea caddy by Saunders & Shepherd dates to 1895 and is designed in an elegant sarcophagus form raised upon sterling silver b...
Sterling Silver
Art Nouveau Cosmic Repoussé Box by Alfred Daguet
Located in Palm Beach, FL
Alfred Louis Achille DAGUET (1875 - 1942) was a metalsmith active in Paris during the first part of the 20th century. His metalwork created prior to the outbreak of World War I, note...
Copper
Diskometal Vessel by Just Andersen, 1920s, Denmark
Located in Værløse, DK
Art Nouveau diskometal casket made by Just Andersen in the 1920s. * Diskometal casket / jewellery box with floral knop and inner in wood. Original cigarette box. * Designer: Just A...
Metal
Fine Carved Wood Box with Morning Glories
By Maison de l'Art Nouveau
Located in Palm Desert, CA
This box is a real treasure! Completely had carved from walnut the detail in the flowers and leaves is quite remarkable. This box required a real master craftsman to achieve the outs...
Walnut
$265Sale Price|20% Off
Antique Jewelry Box Jewels Bronze Colored Metal France
Located in Poperinge, BE
A beautiful, antique French jewelry box, very heavy, made of patinated copper-plated metal, shaped like a table, with a hinged lid and a central medallion depicting a Greek-style fem...
Metal
Beautiful Lithographed Candy Cookie Tin Box Advertising Vintage Sweden, 1910s
Located in Nuernberg, DE
Large antique Swedish Cookie advertising tin. Beautiful decoration piece, nice addition to your kitchen or just to display in every room. Found at an estate sale in Stockholm, Sweden...
Tin
Salimbeni Table Box Art Nouveau Painting Pre-Raphaelite School Fired Enamel
By Giorgio Salimbeni, Salimbeni
Located in Firenze, FI
This rectangular table box is a masterpiece of craftsmanship. Crafted from 925/1000 sterling silver and gold-plated, it features a hand-painted fire-enameled miniature by Beatrice Me...
Gold Plate, Sterling Silver, Enamel
Erhard & Sohne Art Nouveau Jugendstil Arts and Crafts Jewelry Box Casket c. 1905
Located in London, GB
A beautiful art nouveau casket made by Erhard and Sohne in Germany in c. 1905. The casket is exquisitely executed with foliate detailing, made in th...
Brass
Cigar Box with Fine Fine Miniature Alphons Mucha's "Amethyst" Poster Salimbeni
By Giorgio Salimbeni, Salimbeni
Located in Firenze, FI
Rectangular rounded cigar box with vertical opening in 925/1000 sterling silver gold plated with fine miniature hand-painted in tempera on vegetable iv...
Sterling Silver
Snuff Box races miniature fire-enameled guilloche and engraved drawing Salimbeni
By Franco Salimbeni, Salimbeni
Located in Firenze, FI
Octagonal table snuffbox in 925/1000 sterling silver gold plated with black fired enamel inserted in a hand engraved drawing and with fired enamelled miniature, hand painted by the p...
Gold, Gold Plate, Sterling Silver, Enamel
Tiffany Studios Pine Needle Pattern Hankerchief Box
Located in Bronx, NY
This vintage early 20th century Tiffany Studios, New York “handkerchief” box is designed in caramel color favrile art glass with a pine needle pattern...
Brass
French Art Nouveau Bronze and Beveled Crystal Jewelry Casket Circa 1920
Located in Buenos Aires, Argentina
An elegant and authentic French Art Nouveau jewelry casket, dating to circa 1920, masterfully crafted in bronze with beautifully beveled crystal panels. This refined decorative box e...
Crystal, Bronze
Jugendstil Brass Jewelry Casket with Velvet Lining by Erhard & Söhne, Germany
Located in North Miami, FL
1900s Jugendstil golden and silver brass jewelry casket with blue velvet-lined interior by Erhard & Söhne, Germany By: Erhard & Söhne Material: brass, copper, metal, velvet, zinc Te...
Metal, Brass, Copper, Zinc
Art Nouveau Pewter Matchbox by Just Andersen, 1920s, Denmark
Located in Værløse, DK
Art Nouveau pewter matchbox made by Just Andersen in the 1920s. * Pewter matchbox with floral knop and original inner cardboard box (matches not included) * Designer: Just Andersen ...
Pewter
$6,388Sale Price|20% Off
GEORGE ADAM SCHEID 1900 Art Nouveau Joseph Maria Auchentaller Enameled Box
Located in Miami, FL
Joseph Maria Auchentaller enameled box for George Adam Scheid (1837-1921). An extremely rare box created in Vienna, Austria, at the silversmith atelier of Georg Adam Scheid, circa 1...
Silver, Gold, Sterling Silver, Enamel
$265Sale Price|20% Off
Antique Chip Carved Wooden Box with Geometric Floral Design, 19th Century
Located in Bad Säckingen, DE
This antique chip-carved wooden box, from the late 19th century, features intricate geometric and floral patterns on its surface. The hand-carved details showcase a symmetrical arran...
Wood
René Lalique (1860-1945) « Panier de Roses » Box 1919
By René Lalique
Located in Saint-Ouen, FR
René Lalique (1860-1945) « Panier de Roses » Box 1919 Two parts oval glass with a frosted basket of roses motif lid covering the clear bottom of the R. Lalique Box. White and blue ...
Glass
Art Nouveau Casket by Niels Dam Ravn, 1930s, Denmark
By N. Dam Ravn
Located in Værløse, DK
Art Nouveau brass casket designed by Niels Dam Ravn in the 1930s. * Curvilinear bronze casket with floral motifs and fitted wooden interior box * Designer: Niels Dam Ravn * Manufact...
Brass
Art Nouveau Guénardeau box in patinated spelter
Located in Ternay, Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes
Art Nouveau box from the 1920s by the French artist Guénardeau. Entirely made of spelter with decoration typical of the period: flowers, a woman's bust on the lid, and arabesques. A ...
Spelter
Art Nouveau Basilisk Repoussé Box by Alfred Daguet
Located in Palm Beach, FL
Alfred Louis Achille DAGUET (1875 - 1942) was a metalsmith active in Paris during the first part of the 20th century. His metalwork created prior to the outbreak of World War I, note...
Brass, Enamel, Steel
Tiffany Studios Art Nouveau Bronze and Glass Paste Jewelry Box 1910
Located in Buenos Aires, Argentina
Exceptional antique jewelry box attributed to Tiffany Studios, crafted in bronze and decorated with elegant glass paste in soft white and ochre tones. Made in New York, USA, around 1...
Bronze
Mid-Century Rectangular Brass and Shell Jewelry Trinket Box
Located in Haddonfield, NJ
Sturdy rectangular hinged trinket box featuring brass and inlaid iridescent mother of pearl shells throughout. This box is super charming and functional for displaying or containing ...
Metal, Brass
Bronze Casket by Niels Dam Ravn, 1930s, Denmark
By N. Dam Ravn
Located in Værløse, DK
Sizeable Art Noveau Brass Casket made by Niels Dam Ravn in the later 1930s. * Lidded brass casket with a viking. Inner wood box. Signed NDR lower right on the lid. * Designer: Niels...
Brass
Antique Jewelry Box "The Hunt", 1910s, Silvered, Art Nouveau, Iron Craftmanship
Located in Greven, DE
Exceptional antique jewelry box with fine depictions of hunting themes and forest animals. Heavy iron work, silvered in a very good condition. Lined with turquoise fabric in a good c...
Iron
$1,120Sale Price|20% Off
French Art Nouveau Lilac Molded Glass Jewelry Box, Attributed to Daum Nancy
By Daum
Located in Miami, FL
French Art Nouveau Lilac Molded Glass Jewelry Box, Attributed to Daum Nancy, Early 20th Century French Art Nouveau Art Glass Jewelry Box, Daum Nancy Style, French Art Nouveau Molded ...
Glass, Art Glass
Art Nouveau Pewter Box by Just Andersen, 1910s, Denmark
Located in Værløse, DK
Art Nouveau Pewter Box designed by Just Andersen in the late 1910s. * Round hammered pewter box with lid with flower knop and floral chasings * Designer: Just Andersen * Manufactur...
Pewter
$1,043Sale Price|20% Off
Antique 19th Century French Art Nouveau Pierced Gilt Bronze Jewelry Box
Located in Firenze, IT
This lavish French Art Nouveau period (1880-1910) jewelry box is entirely chiseled, hammered and pierced with flowers and leaf patterns. This late 19th – early 20th century rectangul...
Bronze
Art Nouveau Lidded Oak Box with hand carved Peacock and floral theme, circa 1900
Located in Lincoln, Lincolnshire
This is a good quality, hand made hardwood lidded box with a fine quality hand carved bird, Probably a Peacock, together with floral themes, which we date to the late 19th C / early ...
Hardwood, Oak
Daisy Makeig-Jones Wedgwood Ruby Lustre Butterfly Box
By Wedgwood, Daisy Makeig-Jones, Wedgwood Fairyland Lustre
Located in Fort Lauderdale, FL
A ruby lustre box with mother-of-pearl lustre interior and decorated with polychrome butterflies in gold, designed by Daisy Makeig-Jones circa 1920. This ...
Ceramic, Luster, Porcelain
Antique 19th Century French Metal Jewelry Box with Cherub and Birds
Located in West Hollywood, CA
This exquisite 19th-century French metal jewelry box is adorned with enchanting cherub and bird motifs, beautifully capturing the romantic elegance a...
Metal
A R.Lalique 2 Figurines Glass Box.
By René Lalique
Located in SAINT-OUEN-SUR-SEINE, FR
An early R.Lalique boxe which is strongly influenced by the 1900 style . The boxe is made in white glass with a green patina and is signed in molded block letters on the lid of th...
Glass
$176Sale Price|30% Off
Hoffmann and Schlevogt Art Nouveau Malachite Glass Trinket Box
Located in Lucenec, SK
Fantastic example of a I. Heinrich Hoffmann Czech Art Deco malachite glass high relief reclining nude trinket box. It's done in beautiful green Czechoslovakian malachite glass with n...
Malachite
Table Box 925 Silver translucent Enamel on guilloche and miniature Salimbeni
By Salimbeni
Located in Firenze, FI
Rectangular table box in 925/1000 sterling silver with translucent fired enamels on the guilloche and, on the corners, miniature of floral shoots hand-painted by the painter Romano B...
Sterling Silver, Enamel
$396Sale Price|20% Off
Antique Silver Card Case Aide Memoire Purse Birmingham 1908 William Haseler
Located in Toronto, Ontario
Antique silver card case in form of Aide Memoire Purse, Birmingham 1908, William Hair Haseler. Art Nouveau elaborate border surround, monogram possibly H....
Sterling Silver
Wonderful Antique English Sterling Silver Pot Pourri Box by Walker & Hall - 1911
Located in Bath, GB
A wonderful and most unusual Pot Pourri box made from solid English sterling silver fully hallmarked for Sheffield 1911 together with the makers mark for the top notch silversmith, W...
Sterling Silver
Émile Gallé Marquetry "Mayfly and Ferns" Coffret
By Émile Gallé
Located in New York, NY
The motifs on this coffret by Émile Gallé depict a mayfly flitting among a bed of ferns. Hatching in summer and living only a few hours before mating and dying, the mayfly has long s...
Fruitwood
French Art Nouveau Metal Pewter Trinket Jewelry Vanity Tray
Located in Haddonfield, NJ
This small French tray is decorated in the typical styles of this Art Nouveau period featuring a nude woman posing. The condition of the tray is sturdy and has an amazing warm and ch...
Metal
$906Sale Price|20% Off
Loetz Biscuit Barrel Cookie Jar Art Nouveau Iridescent Glass Antique Lötz & WMF
By Loetz Glass, WMF Württembergische Metallwarenfabrik
Located in Bad Säckingen, DE
A lovely Art Nouveau biscuit barrel, made of iridescent art glass with a combed pattern made by Loetz Wwe. with a brass mount by WMF which w...
Silver Plate, Brass
Art Nouveau Repoussé Regal Reliquary by Alfred Daguet
Located in Palm Beach, FL
Alfred Louis Achille DAGUET (1875 - 1942) was a metalsmith active in Paris during the first part of the 20th century. His metalwork created prior to the outbreak of World War I, note...
Copper, Enamel, Steel
Art Nouveau Cold Creatures Repoussé Box by Alfred Daguet
Located in Palm Beach, FL
Alfred Louis Achille DAGUET (1875 - 1942) was a metalsmith active in Paris during the first part of the 20th century. His metalwork created prior to the outbreak of World War I, note...
Brass, Steel
Vintage Marble Trinket Box Hand-cut with Flowers in Relief
Located in Esbjerg, DK
A fine and skillfully crafted stone trinket fashioned from slaps of natural solid marble. The lid is cut in relief with a delicate flower in green, brown and earthy natural color ton...
Marble
Louis Wain Cat Themed Edwardian Pill Box / Snuff Box by LS Mayer, Germany, 1900s
By Louis Wain
Located in London, GB
A fantastic and highly collectible Edwardian Art Nouveau cat-themed pill box or snuff box featuring an enchanting brass plaque of a cat with original green glass eyes, made in German...
Brass, Nickel
Art Nouveau "Ibis" Cigarette Box by Gabriel Argy-Rousseau
Located in New York, NY
This exquisite cigarette box portrays an Egyptian ibis delicately lifting a bouquet of forget-me-nots. The box’s top and sides are covers in friezes of swags of the flowers. The moti...
Glass, Fiberglass
French Art Nouveau Brass Apple-Shaped Jewelry Box/Ashtray, 1920s
Located in Poperinge, BE
A beautiful French jewelry box, trinket box, or ash tray shaped like an apple with branches and leaves; featuring the typical floral and organic Art Nouveau style, circa 1920. This ...
Brass
Pill Box Yellow floral miniature in Art Nouveau style Sterling Silver Salimbeni
By Salimbeni, Franco Salimbeni
Located in Firenze, FI
Pill Box Yellow floral miniature in Art Nouveau style Sterling Silver Salimbeni.Round pillbox in 925/1000 sterling silver gold plated with translucent...
Gold Plate, Sterling Silver, Enamel
Collection of Vintage Dutch Decorative Advertising Tins, 20th century
Located in MAASTRICHT, LI
A charming and visually rich collection of antique and vintage, mostly Dutch, decorative tins, dating primarily from the mid-20th century. This curated group features a variety of or...
Metal, Tin
Art Nouveau Pewter Box by Just Andersen, 1910s, Denmark
Located in Værløse, DK
Art Nouveau Pewter Box designed by Just Andersen in the late 1910s. * Round hammered pewter box with lid with flower knop and floral chasings * Designer: Just Andersen * Manufactur...
Pewter
Silvered metal jewelry box – Late 19th Century
Located in Beuzevillette, FR
Silvered metal jewelry box – Late 19th Century Lovely silvered metal jewelry box, French or German work, circa 1880–1910. The lid features a finely detailed high-relief scene with t...
Metal, Silver
$137Sale Price|50% Off
Silverplate Art Noveau Jewelry Cache
Located in Malibu, CA
Art Nouveau jewelry cache marked 937. Stunning example of Art Nouveau design. This cachet box is decorated with lovely flowers on the top and buds on the side panels. This piece refl...
Silver Plate
Art Noveade German Silver Jewelry Box 800
Located in Autonomous City Buenos Aires, CABA
Art Noveade 800 German Silver Jewelry Box A Box with an intricate pattern engraved on its surface. The pattern consists of swirls and floral ...
Silver