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.
20th Century Art Nouveau Bentwood Chairs by KOHN, Set Of 2, Vienna ca. 1910
Located in Lichtenberg, AT
Gorgeous pair of early 20th century Vienesse secession bentwood chairs made by the world famous company of Jacob & Josef Kohn in Vienna/ Austria in the period around 1910. These beau...
Bentwood
Original Josef Hoffmann & Kohn Jacob Chair from 1914
By Josef Hoffmann, Gebrüder Thonet Vienna GmbH, Woka Lamps
Located in Vienna, AT
A very rare undocumented chair by Josef Hoffmann and J&J Kohn. An identical chair with leather upholstery is available as well.
Bentwood
Vintage Iron Savonarola Style Italian Leather Sling Chair Set
By Curule
Located in Bensalem, PA
Please look at pictures and video for overall detail and condition. Feel free to reach out with any questions.
Metal, Wrought Iron
Josef Hoffmann attr. Pair of Extraordinary Chairs 1905-10 Jugendstil Art Nouveau
Located in Vienna, AT
A pair of extraordinary chairs in the style of the early Josef Hoffmann furniture. The significant skids were used by Hoffmann in the early years of the Wiener Werkstätte from 1903 o...
Fabric, Wood
$1,355Sale Price / set|20% Off
Pair of Beech Art Nouveau High Back Chairs Model 17 by Michael Thonet, 1890s
By Gebrüder Thonet Vienna GmbH, Michael Thonet
Located in Amsterdam, NL
Magnificent and ultra rare pair of Art Nouveau Model 17 side chairs. Design by Michael Thonet for Gebrüder Thonet Vienna. Striking Austrian design from the 1890s. Original beech and ...
Beech, Bentwood
Pair of Original Josef Hoffmann & Wiener Werkstätte Chairs 1904 Jugendstil
By Josef Hoffmann, Woka Lamps, Wiener Werkstätte
Located in Vienna, AT
Josef Hoffmann designed in the early stages of the Wiener Werkstätte apartments for the Wittgenstein Family in Vienna and Berlin. The significant pattern from this period were the st...
Fabric, Wood
Folding Lounge Chair by Thonet with Adjustable Footstool 19th Century
By Gebrüder Thonet Vienna GmbH
Located in Antwerp, BE
Original rare folding lounge chair in bentwood and cane from 1880 by Michael Thonet. Gebrüder Thonet, Vienna, Austria. Steam-bent beechwood and cane.
Rattan, Bentwood
Italian Late 19th Century Art Nouveau Side Chairs, Eugenio Quarti attributed
Located in Vigonza, Padua
Original antique Eugenio Quarti attributed , side chairs in walnut, velvet upholstered with bronze decorations. Polished to wax. Original velvet still in good and usable condition Me...
Bronze
Rare Jugenstil Side Chair Attributed Richard Riemerschmid Germany ca 1899
Located in Den Haag, NL
Rare Sculptural Side Chair Attributed Richard to Riemerschmid Germany ca 1900 The chair even still has the Velvet original upholstery with Lovely embroidery. Re-upholster or leave a...
Rush, Bentwood, Walnut
20th Century Art Nouveau Chairs by KOHN, Bentwood - Pair of Two, AT ca. 1910
By Jacob & Josef Kohn, Marcel Kammerer
Located in Lichtenberg, AT
Rare pair of early 20th century bentwood side chairs designed by none other than the famous Austrian architect and painter Marcel Kammerer (1878 -1959) for Jacob & Josef Kohn. Th...
Bentwood
French Art Nouveau Walnut Side Chair with Pink Velvet Seat, Circa 1900
Located in Queens, NY
French Art Nouveau walnut open back side chair with carved floral design and pink velvet seat.
Velvet, Walnut
Jugendstil Vintage Armchairs Office Chair No 714 Jacob & Josef Kohn circa 1902
Located in Vienna, AT
Jugendstil armchairs model no 714 designed in Style Otto Wagner, and produced by Jacob & Josef Kohn, 1902. Documented in the company´s catalogue Kohn from 1903. The chairs were made out of mahogany stained beechwood and shellac hand polished. While the frame was made out of beechwood, the back and seat were made of perforated plywood...
Plywood, Beech
$34,500 / set
Rare Pair of Side Chairs by Carlo Bugatti
Located in Montreal, QC
Rare pair of side chair by Carlo Bugatti made of ebonized wood, upholstered with parchment and inlaid with pewter details and mounted with hammered copper decorations. Italy: circ...
Walnut
Pair of French Art Nouveau Side Chairs in Solid Mahogany Sprig Seat Green Velvet
Located in Vigonza, Padua
1910s pair of French Art Nouveau side chairs in solid mahogany, original spring seat, green velvet upholstered, only wax-polished. The up...
Mahogany
Pair of J & J Kohn Thonet Bentwood Cane Viennese Café Chairs
Located in Rio Vista, CA
A refined charming pair of stamped Jacob and Josef Kohn for Mundus Viennese bent beechwood side chairs from the Art Nouveau period of the early 20th century made in Austria. The chai...
Cane, Beech, Bentwood
Original Rare Otto Wagner Chair by Thonet Vienna 1901 Jugendstil
By Otto Wagner, Woka Lamps, Gebrüder Thonet Vienna GmbH
Located in Vienna, AT
Stained beachwood, seat and back with leather, seat height 46cm (18,11") Lit.: "Gebogenes Holz", Asenbaum /Hummel 1979, p:29.
Leather, Beech
Original Otto Prutscher & Gebrueder Thonet Vienna Jugendstil Chair, 20th Century
By Woka Lamps, Otto Prutscher, Gebrüder Thonet Vienna GmbH
Located in Vienna, AT
Designed for the Café Heinrichshof opposite to the States Opera House in Vienna, ruined in 1945.
Hardwood
Georges de Feure pair of sidechairs, 1900 Expo model, in hand sculpted pearwood.
Located in Philadelphia, PA
French Art Nouveau pair of sculpted pearwood side chairs (en suite with #1715 and #1716) by Georges de Feure, model presented in the Bing Pavilion at the Paris Exposition Universelle...
Pearwood
19th Century Venetian High Back Chairs by Atelier Cadorin, Walnut , Hand Carved
Located in Vigonza, Padua
This exceptional Italian Liberty high-back chair, crafted in solid walnut and attributable to the school of Vincenzo Cadorin, represents a refined example of early 20th-century Itali...
Walnut
Early Edition Hill House Chair by Charles Rennie Mackintosh for Cassina Italy
By Cassina
Located in Weesp, NL
Introducing the Timeless Elegance of the 1980's Hill House Chair by Charles Rennie Mackintosh! Step back in time and embrace the exquisite craftsmanship of the early 1980's Hill Hou...
Velvet, Wood
Joseph Maria Olbrich attributed. An Art Nouveau inlaid side chair.
Located in London, GB
Joseph Maria Olbrich was an Austrian architect and one of the Vienna Secession founders.
Art Nouveau Side Chair Designed by Thonet, Austria, 1910
By Thonet
Located in Antwerp, BE
Classic collectible chair by famous German-Austrian cabinetmaker Michael Thonet. Bentwood frame with hooped legs. The seat is embossed with a decorative floral motif.
Bentwood
Pair Original Art Nouveau Chairs, Hand-Carved Blonde Cherry, Leather Upholstered
Located in Vigonza, Padua
Early 20th century Italian pair chairs, Art Nouveau , solid hand-carved cherry and leather upholstered. Only strengthened the structure and polished to wax Measure cm: H 108\50, W 4...
Leather, Cherry
Pair of Art Nouveau Beech Wood and Striped Velvet Austrian Chairs, 1910
Located in Roma, Lazio
Very elegant appearance due the use of not common fabric, coming from particular Italian silk factory, this gentle upholstery gives these armchairs a very luxurious appearance. The ...
Beech, Velvet
19th Century Single Chair in Black and Yellow
Located in Schöfflisdorf, CH
19th century single chair in black and yellow.
Satin, Wood
Danish Designer, Side Chairs, Oak, Denmark, 1920s
Located in High Point, NC
A pair of oak side chairs or dining chairs designed and produced in Denmark, c. 1920s. Seat height 18”.
Oak
Vintage GAR Products Yellow Bentwood Ice Cream Parlor Dining Side Chair - a Pair
Located in Philadelphia, PA
Please message us with your zip code to request a more reasonable domestic U.S. shipping quote. Vintage GAR Products Yellow Bentwood Ice Cream Parlor Dining Side Chairs - a Pair. It...
Bentwood
Venetian 1910s Art Nouveau armchairs in hand carved Walnut with original Velvet
Located in Vigonza, Padua
Italian Venetian Early 20th Century Art Nouveau armchairs in hand carved Walnut, polished with wax. Original antique pink velvet upholstery still usable Measures cm: H 87\42 x W 62 ...
Velvet, Walnut
c.1940s Pair Leon Jallot Atr. Carved Scallop Edge Bergere Arm Lounge Chairs MINT
By Léon Jallot
Located in Rockaway, NJ
c.1940s Pair Leon Jallot Atr. Carved Scallop Edge Bergere Arm Lounge Chairs MINT
Fruitwood
Jugendstil Vintage Walnut Armchair by Josef Maria Olbrich, 1898-1899, Austria
Located in Vienna, AT
Jugendstil walnut Jugendstil armchair designed by Josef Maria Olbrich 1898-1899 and executed by Michael Niedermoser, Vienna. The beautiful armchair...
Leather, Walnut
Wiener Werkstätte Modernist Chairs in Walnut, Original Taupe Velvet Upholstery
Located in Vigonza, Padua
Early 20th century pair of Wiener Werkstätte Modernist chairs in walnut, original taupe velvet upholstery, still usable. Measures cm: H100/50, W 45, D 45.
Velvet, Walnut
Pair of "Palmette" armchairs in bentwood - Hilma/Belgium - original upholstery
Located in Linkebeek, BE
Desk armchairs - original upholstery fabric Measures : 55,5x41cm H:77cm SH:47cm Materials : Wood - Fabric
Fabric, Wood
$940 / item
French Art Nouveau Carved Walnut Side Chairs
Located in Vienna, AT
Solid walnut wood construction, upholstered seat. Made in France in 1900-1905. New upholstery on request possible. Delivery time 2-3 weeks. Two pieces available.
Walnut
Antique Elbow Chair, English, Beech, Morning Room Seat, Art Nouveau, Victorian
Located in Hele, Devon, GB
This is an antique elbow chair. An English, needlepoint over beech and mahogany morning room seat in Art Nouveau taste, dating to the late Victorian period, circa 1900. Charming nee...
Cotton, Beech, Mahogany
$996 / item
Four Chairs in the Thonet Style, circa 1900
By Thonet
Located in Mouscron, WHT
4 Chairs in the Thonet style, circa 1900.
Beech
$1,757
Jugendstil Brass Chair
Located in Hronská Breznica, Banskobystrický kraj
Jugendstil brass chair in original vintage condition with signs of usage.
Brass
Beautiful Pair of Early 20th Century Art Nouveau Carved Wood Armchairs
Located in Long Island City, NY
A Beautiful Pair of Early 20th Century Art Nouveau Carved Wood Arm Chairs High backs with high wavy arms, fine floral and foliate carved motifs on the back, arms and bottom. Detail...
Fabric, Wood
1980s Hill House 1 Chair by Charles Rennie Mackintosh for Cassina Italy
Located in Amsterdam, NL
Stunning and elegant Art Nouveau Hill House 1 chair. Design by Charles Rennie Mackintosh and manufactured and relaunched by Cassina Italy in 1973. Striking Scottish design from 1902....
Velvet, Ash
Gustave Serrurier-Bovy, Silex, Side Chair, Belgium, circa 1925
Located in New York, NY
One of Belgium's leading Art Nouveau designers, Gustave Serrurier-Bovy began producing his Silex series across a range of inexpensive furnishings in 1902, guided by a central belief that everyone should have access to beautiful furniture. The series comprised several ready-to-assemble kits. Bibliography: For illustrations of a similar model, see: Watelet, Jacques-Gre´goire. Serrurier-Bovy. Brussels: Ateliers Vokaer, 1986. 87, 92. For an illustration of this identical model, see: Bigot du Mesnil du Buisson, Franc¸oise & Etienne du Mesnil du Buisson. Serrurier-Bovy un cre´ateur, pre´curseur. Dijon: Editions-Faton, 2008. 93-168. Plaque: Serrurier-Bovy Paris Nice...
Iron
Maison Antoine Bastet Antique Carved Oak Hall Side Chairs, Pair
Located in North Miami, FL
Maison Antoine Bastet of Lyon, France (Labelled to underside of both chairs) created these exquisite hand carved oak Hall chairs with wonderful reliefs of chestnuts, foliage and bamb...
Oak
Original and Documented Jugendstil Adolf Loos Chair, 20th Century, 1907
By Friedrich Otto Schmidt, Adolf Loos, Woka Lamps
Located in Vienna, AT
Chair from the antechamber of the Rudolf Kraus apartment, brother of Karl Kraus, the famous wordsmith. This Apartment in Vienna 1, Nibelungengasse 13, was presented by Adolf Loos on ...
Beech
$396Sale Price / set|20% Off
Pair of Antique Ribbon Carved Caned Seat Side Chairs
Located in Trenton, NJ
This distinguished pair of antique side chairs embodies the decorative elegance associated with late nineteenth and early twentieth century furniture design. Executed in figured wood...
Wood
Early 20th Century Pair Eclectic Venice Chairs in Walnut by Testolini Frères
Located in Vigonza, Padua
Spectacular pair of chairs extensively carved in the eclectic style of the Art Nouveau period by the Testolini Brothers of Venice. In hand-carved and ebonized walnut. Due to their el...
Walnut
Pair of Art Nouveau Mahogany and Tapestry Style Upholstery Side Chairs
Located in Germantown, MD
Pair of Art Nouveau Mahogany and Tapestry style Re-Upholstered Side Chairs in great vintage condition. Measure 20" in width x 20" in depth x 35" in height x 18" seat height.
Textile, Tapestry, Mahogany
Vintage French Art Nouveau Style Hand Forged Scrolling Wrought Iron Side Chair
Located in Philadelphia, PA
Vintage French Art Nouveau Style Hand Forged Scrolling Wrought Iron Side Chair. Item features an ornate back rest, finials, legs, and stretcher supported base. Circa Mid 20th Century...
Wrought Iron
Art Nouveau Pair of Side Chairs in Walnut, Restored & New Upholstered
Located in Vigonza, Padua
Early 20th century Art Nouveau elegant robust couple of side chairs in blond walnut, new upholstered, restored and polished to wax. Measures cm: H 45/100, W 40, D 43.
Walnut
Early 20th Century Italian Art Nouveau Ebonized Chair sculturby Giacomo Cometti
Located in Vigonza, Padua
Elegant Italian Art Nouveau (Liberty) chair, dating to the early 20th century and attributed to Giacomo Cometti, whose name is finely carved into the central cartouche of the backres...
Walnut
Italian Art Nouveau Side Chairs with Stool, Blond Walnut, Wax-Polished
Located in Vigonza, Padua
Elegant Italian Art Nouveau side chairs with stool, in blond walnut, hand carved, restored and polished with wax. Precious two-colored striped fabric in dark red velvet. Measures ...
Walnut
Danish Designer, Side Chair, Oak, Denmark, 1920s
Located in High Point, NC
An oak side chair or dining chair designed and produced in Denmark, c. 1920s. Seat height 18”.
Oak
Danish Designer, Side Chairs, Oak, Denmark, 1920s
Located in High Point, NC
A pair of oak side chairs or dining chairs designed and produced in Denmark, c. 1920s. Seat height 18”.
Oak
A pair of French Art Nouveau oak dining chairs with whiplash side stretchers
Located in London, GB
A pair of French Art Nouveau oak dining chairs with organic back design turned front legs and whiplash side stretchers in the true Nancy ...
Hide, Oak
Original Pair of Bedroom Armchairs with Footstool, Damask Velvet Upholstered
Located in Vigonza, Padua
Art Nouveau age, original pair of bedroom armchairs with footstool upholstered in original damask velvet in good condition wax-polished and s...
Damask, Walnut
Art Nouveau 1890s Pair of Lounge Chairs, Hand-Carved Walnut , spring seat
Located in Vigonza, Padua
Italian Art Nouveau 1890s pair of bed room chairs, with hand-carved walnut legs, spring seat, newly upholstered with light dove gray fabric Measures cm: H...
Walnut
Jugendstil Vintage Beech Leather Side Chair Joseph Urban Gebrüder Thonet 1903
By Joseph Urban, Thonet
Located in Vienna, AT
Jugendstil Vintage Authentic Side Chair Slipper Chair Desk Chair Model No. 405 by Joseph Urban for Gebrüder Thonet circa 1903, Vienna. A wonderful chair or side chair from stained be...
Brass
Jugendstil Vintage Thonet Chair No 519 Adolf Loos for Cafe Capua Vienna 1913
By Gebrüder Thonet Vienna GmbH
Located in Vienna, AT
Jugendstil vintage Chair Model number 519 by Thonet. Adolf Loos designed the chair for Cafe Capua. While the wooden parts are shellac polished by hand, the ...
Bentwood, Beech
$553Sale Price|46% Off
Art Nouveau Side Chairs by Guglielmo Ulrich, Faux Leather, Italy, 1950
Located in Ljubljana, SI
A beautiful pair of side chairs, manufactured in Italy around 1950. The seats are upholstered in high quality brown faux leather. The curved shape of the seat and backrest add ni...
Faux Leather, Hardwood
Pair of Antique Side Horseshoe shaped Chairs, attr. to Hans Gunther Reinstein
Located in Beograd, RS
In this listing you will find a pair of stunning Jugendstil horseshoe shaped armchairs or side chairs, design attributed to Hans Gunther Reinstein. The chairs are done in beech and w...
Wood
Pair of French Art Nouveau Side Chairs by Gaillard in Walnut & Leather
By Gaillard
Located in Queens, NY
Pair of French Art Nouveau walnut sleigh design open back side chairs with brown leather seat (GAILLARD) (pg. 386, Collectors Encyclopedia of Antiques) (matching table-Inv. #040557E)
Leather, Walnut
Art Nouveau armchair in oak circa 1900.
By Prag-Rudniker Korbwaren-Fabrication, Hans Vollmer
Located in Mouscron, WHT
Art Nouveau armchair in oak circa 1900.
Oak
Mid-century modern bentwood chairs with cane seats and backs
Located in Linkebeek, BE
Bentwood furniture - Desk Chair Measures : 52,5x56,5cm H:85cm SH:39cm The frame is made of bentwood, stained and varnished. The seat and back are caned. The design is characteristic...
Cane, Wood