Page 47 - Homes & Antiques (February 2020)

C a style that be!er

an you think of

encapsulates the
era from which it
was born than art
deco? Sandwiched
between the horror and
disarray of the two World Wars,
there was a glorious, golden
time, where society chose to
forget the austerity and
conservatism of the past and
turned sharply towards the
decadent, the glamorous and
the thoroughly modern.
With a new consumer
economy booming and a
renewed sense of hope and
aspiration in the air, the 1920s
roared in on the bloodied coat
tails of the First World War,
bringing "appers, jazz and
the rise of the silver screen
alongside a bold, new aesthetic.
Taking its name from the 1925
Exposition Internationale des
Arts Décoratifs et Industriels
Modernes, a huge exhibition

Compared to the booming nightlife scene, worklife in the 1920s
was a more sombre affair, with the Great Depression hitting at
the end of the decade. Still, that didn’t stop designers creating
stunning, practical pieces to brighten formal situations. To
channel the look, bedeck a maple or rosewood desk with sleek
accessories – a dome lamp and Smith Corona typewriter – as
well as more delicate, handmade ornaments.

Art deco desk c1930, £4,800, Gazelles of Lyndhurst.
Wrought-iron inkstand c1920s, £950, Matthew Foster Art
Deco Gallery London. Books, stylist’s own. Picture Show
magazine, £8, Rachel’s & Michael’s Antiques. Pre-war Smith
Corona 4 typewriter, £925, Mr & Mrs Vintage Typewriters.
Stag sculpture on onyx and marble base c1930, £100;
shagreen photo frame c1930, £550, both Gazelles of
Lyndhurst. René Lalique 1929 paperweights ‘Antelope’,
£1,100; ‘Daim’, £1,100; ‘Perche’, £1,500, all M&D Moir. Art
deco dome lamp, £985, Jeroen Markies. 1929 geometric
teacup, £85 as part of a set, Savoy Art Deco Collectables.

February 2020 Homes & Antiques 47