Every item on this page was chosen by a Veranda editor. We may earn commission on some of the items you choose to buy.
Art Nouveau Is Back—and More Dramatic Than Ever
Theatrical botanicals make a sweeping comeback, immersing interiors in fluid pastels, airy foliage and titan scale.
The painterly curves of Art Nouveau were revolutionary. The sinuous botanical motifs that arose in rural England at the turn of the 20th century lifted the unruliness of nature to “new art,” a powerful antithesis of the rising industrial order and mass production of goods. Art Nouveau sprung from its more pragmatic cousin Arts and Crafts, the handcraft revival led by William Morris, but its luminaries, such as architects Charles Rennie Mackintosh and A.H. Mackmurdo, sought to heighten the drama by reenvisioning flora and fauna through whiplash curls and expressive lines.
Both would be eclipsed by modernism, but their intertwined influence lingered through the decades that followed.Art Nouveau’s latest resurgence in fabrics, rugs, and wallcoverings comes as no surprise to Genevieve Bennett of Liberty, the heritage British print and textile house. “Just as the original movement was a reaction to industrialism, this renewed interest in recent years is perhaps a response to the power of the digital age,” she says. “Contemporary interior trends champion a reimagining of the style, capturing a sense of nostalgia for the previous century.”
Today’s designers have refreshed the core aesthetics of Art Nouveau by tinkering with the scale and introducing airier, tone-on-tone color pairings. Both prove the movement’s enduring reach, grounding interiors more than 100 years later in nature’s theater.
Watch Next
Let's Bring Back Retro-Style Kitchens
This Resin Furniture Blooms Eternally
Our Favorite Nature-Inspired Textiles for Spring
Transform Your Table with the Painted Garden Look