Art & Statues
Art Deco by Victor Arwas
Art Deco by Victor Arwas
A landmark reference on the Art Deco movement, first published by Victor Arwas and revised in this expanded 2000 edition from Harry N. Abrams. The book traces Art Deco from its origins at the 1925 Paris Exposition through its full range of expression in furniture, jewelry, glass, ceramics, sculpture, and graphic design. Illustrated with 437 plates, including 340 in color, it remains one of the most comprehensive single-volume studies of the style ever published.
Victor Arwas built his reputation as a London gallery owner with deep knowledge of Art Deco objects and the collectors who preserved them, and that expertise runs through every chapter of this book. He opens with the 1925 Exposition des Arts Décoratifs et Industriels Modernes in Paris, the event that gave the movement its name, then moves through the decorative arts field by field. Furniture designers such as Émile-Jacques Ruhlmann appear alongside jewelers, glassmakers, and poster artists including Cassandre, giving readers a sense of how the style moved across mediums rather than staying confined to any single craft.
The book also traces Art Deco's reach beyond France, following its influence into the United States and as far as Czechoslovakia, and touching on figures ranging from Georg Jensen to Jacques Lipchitz. Arwas pairs this historical range with a strong visual program. Full page reproductions and detailed close ups let readers study construction, materials, and ornament in the same pieces he discusses in the text, from wrought iron screens to hand bound books. A biographical section covering more than 140 artists adds further depth for readers who want to research specific names encountered throughout the book.
This particular copy is the 2000 revised edition, expanded from the original with additional plates and updated material. It arrives in like new condition, with the dust jacket's silver and black geometric cover and gold foil title intact and unmarked. It would suit collectors of Art Deco decorative arts, students of design history, or anyone building a serious reference library on the period.
