Art Deco (building style) 

Period

1920s and 30s

Description

Art Deco was a modernist reaction to the free-flowing naturalism of Art Nouveau. It came to symbolise the Jazz Age with its luxurious use of modern materials and bright colours combined with industrialised mass production. It was influenced by contemporary art styles such as Cubism and also by discoveries in the Tomb of Tutankhamun in Egypt in 1922.  Some of the first deco architecture came from the Bauhaus School in Germany. The architect Le Corbusier is credited with naming the style after seeing L’Exposition Internationale Des Arts Décoratifs Et Industriels held in Paris in 1925.

Features

Striking, stylised exterior motifs

Strong geometric windows and coloured glass 

Contrasting shapes and colours

Examples

Debenhams, formerly Lefevres

K&C Hospital  

Cherry Avenue, 1937