Art Nouveau

(1880 to 1910)

Immortalizing mortality

Art Nouveau (Jugendstil) was an attempt to respond to the human desire for beauty and security in times of soulless mechanization. Even though this era only existed for a brief moment, it had a lasting impact on the world of jewellery. Soft colours and flowing, organic designs such as blossoms, leaves, insects and beetles define the Art Nouveau pieces. The transience of life is captured by depicting, for instance, the sprouting, blossoming and withering of plants. The phantom and mythological worlds are also portrayed, leaving the beholder of these pieces with a melancholic feeling about the transience of earthly things.