Graphic Design History- Part 1

Arts and Crafts Movement

The arts and crafts movement was a British design movement that took place during the period 1860- 1910, inspired by the socialist ideas of John Ruskin. The term 'Arts and Crafts' was given in 1887 at a meeting of the Arts and Crafts Exhibition Society.
William Morris was one of the key designers of this movement. The movement was a reaction against the industrialisation of the time and it saw a return to traditional handicrafts and processes. It was inspired by the notion of wanting to live in the rural days again, before the times of industrialisation and hence featured a lot of natural forms and muted colours. 
William Morris looked back with admiration at the art and architecture of the middle ages.  He learned and mastered  many  different  crafts, including printing and glass blowing in order to understand the qualities of his materials. For him the pleasure of creation was as important as the beauty of the object created. He believed the artist should not copy nature, but recreate it, without losing its freshness. Morris wanted his work to be available to all,  however the traditional processes used to produce his work meant that in reality, it was mainly the wealthy that could afford his work. The arts and crafts movement also spread to America (1890-1916) where it was even more successful than in Britain, because they were able to industrialize the manufacturing process.
Arts and Crafts practitioners such as William Morris also wanted the education system of art to change and focus more on teaching of craft rather than design in the abstract.  As a result of this, inn 1884, a Royal Commission recommended that more attention should be given to the suitability of design to the material it would be made.

Art Nouveau

In 1895 a gallery opened in Paris called L’Art Nouveau, where the owner Samuel Bing wanted to show case some new works.  A visitor would have difficulty in recognising a coherent style which we now call Art Nouveau. 

Art Nouveau was influenced by Japanese, Celtic, Gothic and Rococo art. It looked towards the future  and it influenced many areas of design including print design, jewelry design and architecture.

The aim of the movement was to avoid repetition of earlier styles and also to create a style which would shape the environment.  Something that distinguishes Art Nouveau from other art movements is that is uses decorative elements for pure visual appeal without necessarily having any meaning.  In almost every example of the style there are decorative elements or motifs, e.g, the popular 'Whiplash' line.

The art nouveau style first emerged in England but its influence on architecture was not as much as on the continent in places like Spain and France, where it reached a greater level of exuberance. On the continent, some designers such as Henry van de Valde, shared Morris’ socialist views, but they were not opposed to industrialisation meaning that beautiful objects could be reproduced inexpensively by industry.  However the majority were in pursuit of individualism which could only be afforded by the wealthy.  The Art Nouveau movement also took inspiration from natural forms like the previous Arts and Crafts Movement, but took a less literal form. Nature was reduced to essential lines and then twisted, elongated and curved according to the artists requirements. It was luxurious, inspirational and sensual. It often featured nude women with long flowing hair. Beardsley, Mackintosh, Klimt and Lautrec were key designers in the art Nouveau movement.

Art Nouveau was replaced by 20th-century modernist styles but it is now considered as an important transition between the historic revival styles of the 19th-century and Modernism. The style was the first major artistic stylistic movement in which mass-produced graphics played a key role.