The Nature of Art Nouveau
17 Oct 2015 – 24 Dec
Gallery One
The Lighthouse, Scotland’s Centre for Design and Architecture will host the UK's Premier of the Art Nouveau exhibition in Gallery 1.
At the end of the 19th century, a far-reaching movement which brought about an artistic regeneration emerged in Europe, with Nature as its chief source of inspiration. From Barcelona to Helsinki and from Glasgow to Nancy, nature shaped this new aesthetic and gave life to forms which revolutionised lifestyles, as science and art were united in the drive for modernity.
The Nature of Art Nouveau invites you to explore “nature’s temple”, as celebrated by Charles Baudelaire, a world incorporating symbols, scientific discoveries and influences from faraway lands. Armed with a revitalised repertoire, Art Nouveau creators translated their personal perceptions of beauty into their own individual languages. Although their inspiration was firmly rooted in the practical needs of daily life, the realm they created became an imaginary paradise peopled with organic, sensual figures, utopian worlds, dreams and mysteries….
Conceived by the Catalan art historian Teresa-M. Sala, The Nature of Art Nouveau is an exhibition based on both encyclopaedic information and individual experimentation. Using photographs and documents, together with a dynamic scenography created by Antoni Garau, it offers a concise view of Art Nouveau yet also aims to bring vividly to life the “perfumes, sounds and hues” of the natural world.
Founded in 1999 and financed by partner institutions and the European Commission, the mission of the Réseau Art Nouveau Network is to protect and raise awareness of the Art Nouveau heritage across Europe, through seminars, literature available to the general public, exchanges of experience between partners and travelling exhibitions.