There are a lot of “how to” books out there on furniture building and general woodworking techniques, but I can’t seem to find any resources on building highly skilled stuff such as Art Nouveau furniture. I have a well equipped shop and a few years experience producing your basic, run of the mill pieces, such as raised panel cabinets and case work along with simple lined pieces such as Craftsman, Mission, Shaker, Federal, basic Queen Ann and the like. I’d really like to experiment with the funky curvy Art Nouveau style, but I’m not sure how to get started other then trying my best to copy a photographed piece I like. I guess what I’m looking for is a few project plans or a book that can teach be techniques of building this style. Yes, I want to be spoon feed!!! Can anyone make a recommendation?
Thanks,
TimmyD
Replies
Much like "there's no crying in baseball"..........there's no spoon feeding to Art Nouveau.
There's a reason there's no plans. as Jimmy Dugan says, "greatness is in the hard, if it were so easy everybody would do it".
It's a great time period of furniture history, late 1800's early 1900's......all kinds of philosophical nonsense. The key to Art Nouveau is that it's intention was to bring furniture up a level into the Fine Arts or Decorative Arts. Major painters and artists of the time tossed their hats in the furniture design ring.
Research the time period, you'll find it's a heck of alot easier designing in the style with wrought iron, leaded glass, and a paint-brush than wood. That's the HARD!!!!
If you've done the cabriole leg, you're part way there. If you've stack laminated, you're further along. Look at Castle, Esherick and DiNova and don't think Maloofs chair techniques can't be used either.
Hey............make the Mackintosh chair you see in re-runs of StarTrek.....that's Art Nouveau with a straighter line.
Oh.............by the way you want a plan...........go to FWW May/June 1987. But appreciate the time period too.
Hope this helps.........Neil Lamens
Hey............make the Mackintosh chair you see in re-runs of StarTrek.....that's Art Nouveau with a straighter line.
I don't know much about styles but I'm pretty up on Star Trek. Could you tell me which series, and where it's used? There are a lot of chairs on Star Trek!My goal is for my work to outlast me. Expect my joinery to get simpler as time goes by.
Google .....Rennie Mackintosh... under images...............it's the high back with the oval disk at the top.
look in MOMA.org also.
If you're into woodworking.........you've seen it.
Sailho............Neil Lamens
PS......just did it.... go to: moma.org then search rennie mackintosh...... 2 hits slect side chair.
Edited 1/26/2006 5:16 pm ET by sailho
I'm glad you brought it up. I have been looking a bit.http://images.google.ca/images?svnum=10&hl=en&q=Art+Nouveau+furniture&spell=1Good luck Ron
Hi Ron:
What is it that draws you to Art Nouveau???? Are you planning on building a piece???
Sailho
During the mid 70's I rebuilt several large art nouveau leaded glass windows. The degree of workmanship needed to be of the highest order, not only for the designer but more so for the glass artisan. It was quite the challenge when compared to the vast majority of other window work I did. I was intrigued at the technical skills needed to cut and assemble the most difficult of glass shapes. Concave cuts are the most difficult.Today they have glass of more uniform thickness and softness (less brittle). They also use diamond band saws and diamond sanding drums. During the period, they used glass cutters and grozzed out small pieces of glass to get the correct size and shape. ( Grozzing, is using a pair of soft metal pliers held parallel to the length of the glass. The soft pliers wore away as they grabbed and nibbled small pieces of glass down to the score line.) I have several drawings I worked on back then for a large mirror. I bought the mahogany back then just in case I decided to resurrect the idea some time. Kids, family and other commitments have kept me from getting serious about it. I have been fooling around with veneer work for a couple of years now. It just seems like a logical progression at some point in time I had to commit to it.My carving has improved but not to my satisfaction for the piece I have drawn up.Its a great project for CNC router folks.RonStained glass design books will have some designs with nice flowing curves. I don't have any but there around.
Thanks for the reply.
I too, got derailed..........it's my favorite time period. Not just furniture but clothes, social issues, movement of the arts the whole picture.
Back in the late 70's.......did a few stools using Van de Velde's simpler approach.
Presently; in between stuff......I find myself thinking of curved casegoods again.
Interesting!!!!!!..............Sailho
Can I join in? Art nuveau is also a paradigm of mine and I've really enjoyed this little discussion. But, tell me -- do you think the flowing lines of the cabinet doors, e.g., the calla lilly example by Wm. Doub, are applied to the door fronts or actually carved from thick stock?Here's a rather simple example of some screen doors I made last year with just a hint of art nuveau in them:
In this example, flowing hardware is applied as an overlay............think of it much like adding the knee bracket on a cabriole leg.
Now you'll no doubt see relief carving of thicker stock in certain applications.
Economy of materials is the key to making margins.
sailho
Thanks. I had hoped it wasn't ALL relief carving! And, of course, I meant nouveau, not nuveau. My carving skills are coming up, bt strictly novice.
Yo Jimma:
What are you planning????
sailho
Too many irons in the fire at the moment to undertake a major new project (I'm supposed to be retired, incidentally), but one current project is a more-or-less traditional design for a sign/carving that says "La Cucina" . This is to mount on the wall by our kitchen. It will be approximately 36" X 14" with grapes and grape leaves in relief around the field which will contain "La Cucina" in a Roman typeface. If it weren't for having to have a traditional Italian look about it, I might redesign it with Nouveau aspects -- a mixed metaphor that wouldn't meet "local" approval. But as for any new projects (other than a strip canoe I have in mind), I'm definitely starting to think in Nouveau terms. And, what about you?
Carv'n Jimma:
Hi............of course like most of us out here in woodworking land, I can finish more projects in my head with the best of'm.
I'm into all kinds of "building" and have experimented all over the "available materials list", but always love coming back to a shop smelling like fresh cut cherry. I love it.
I purchased a veneer press about 5 years ago and since then have been making flat panel case goods with really cool veneers. As you mentioned improving your carving, well with the use of my veneer press, I'd like to go after Art Nouveau by creating, for example, an Aubrey Beardsley like poster using, marquetry techniques and use them as panels in my doors or drawer faces. I love using the term "transitional builder" so I can throw all kinds of period icons into my designs. A piece of dental molding here, a bun leg there, and enjoy having fun with the "building process". I also love learning so the designing makes researching really cool.
Have fun with your relief carving, sounds like your not far from that elusive Art Nouveau "GEM". Remember it's not far from one of your honed edges.
OH...........by the way......you know that research I mentioned above......it also has to be approved by the "locals". Good line!!!!!
Sailho
Yo Jimma..........Me again:
Hope I'm not botheirng you???
Last night I was looking at my recent issue of Woodwork Magazine (April 2006) and on pg 48 a fella by the name of Endre Pataky has sculpted a Candleholder in the Art Nouveau style.
Though this might help.
Sailho
I did see that candleholder and was impressed by the workmanship and, I guess, the design. It's beautiful, but I reserve a small judgement for functionality. It might as well be a water pistol as art for art's sake.
I think I'm looking at it, here, but darned if I can think of it (or anything much like it) in Star Trek... ?My goal is for my work to outlast me. Expect my joinery to get simpler as time goes by.
That chair is certainly in Blade Runner, though I'm not so sure about Star Trek. In Blade Runner, the replicant Rachel sits in a Mackintosh chair. These chairs also appear in Babylon5 (which has similarities to Star Trek), the Addams Family, and Doctor Who.
Good luck with the chair and thanks for some original ideas
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